Man breaks into wrong house just two days after being released from prison

A man who mistakenly broke into the wrong person's house and caused hundreds of pounds of damage is behind bars and awaiting sentence.

Scott Donkin pleaded guilty to breaking into what he thought was a family member’s home in Peterlee. Newton Aycliffe magistrates' court heard that just two days after being released from prison, Donkin, of no fixed abode, used a brick to smash through a glass door and enter an address in the Elm Tree Gardens area of the town.

Heavily drunk, he proceeded to cause several hundred pounds worth of damage to the property.

Officers found him in an upstairs bedroom, where he was eating chocolate biscuits and wearing clothes he had found on the floor.

He was arrested on suspicion of burglary, and informed during interview that the house was no longer occupied by his family member, but by a total stranger.

Donkin was charged with burglary and appeared at court on Monday, January 22, where he pleaded guilty to the offence.

The 30-year-old was remanded into custody to appear at Durham Crown Court next month for sentencing.