A BUNGLING burglar, caught by police pretending to be asleep in the flat he'd just broken into, has been jailed for three years.

Paul Jackson was caught napping by Dorset Police after officers were called to a flat in West Overcliff Drive, Westbourne, last November.

The 50-year-old Bournemouth man - who described himself in court as a 'professional burglar' - denied breaking into the flat to steal. Instead he argued he'd been drinking heavily that night and had gone into the wrong flat by mistake.

However, when officers arrived at the property in the early hours they found a window pane had been smashed before discovering Jackson pretending to be asleep in a bed.

Not only was the hapless Jackson found hiding under the sheets, he'd also managed to cut himself on his head while breaking in and his blood was splattered all over the mattress.

Detective Constable Symon Clarke, of Dorset Police's priority crime team, said: "I am pleased that the court didn't accept Jackson's defence.

"I hope the sentence handed out today acts as a warning to others committing burglary offences in Dorset that they will get caught and dealt with robustly by the courts."

The flat targeted by Jackson was empty following the death of the owner.

Jackson was found guilty at Bournemouth Crown Court on Thursday and sentenced to three years in prison by the judge.