A BURGLAR who was caught raiding a student's room in Bournemouth has been jailed for eight months.

Aaron Beau Hoey pretended he had been let into the student's Charminster Road flat by a friend when he was found in the room at 5am on Thursday September 29, Bournemouth Crown Court heard.

But the victim looked around his room and realised drawers were open and his aftershave, shower gel and Nintendo DS were missing.

A pair of his hair clippers fell out of Hoey's pocket and, when the victim's friends came to his aid, they discovered Hoey was hiding a pair of the victim’s black trainers under his hooded top, the court was told.

The court heard the students called police and Hoey, 37, of no fixed address, was arrested at the scene. Stolen items were found hidden in his clothing.

Hoey was sentenced on Thursday December 1 after pleading guilty to burglary at an earlier hearing.

Detective Constable Christian Bryant, of Dorset Police’s Priority Crime Team, said: "I hope the sentence handed out by the court will send out a strong message that crimes such as this will simply not be tolerated.

"The victim believes Hoey gained entry to his room through a bedroom window which he had left open. I would like to remind all residents to ensure they do not leave windows or doors open and unlocked when they go out. Please take some simple crime prevention steps to avoid becoming a victim of opportunistic thieves such as Hoey."

Further crime prevention advice can be found at dorset.police.uk.