A BURGLAR who stole jewellery and a handbag before driving off in a victim's car was arrested in a Bournemouth back garden by a Dorset Police dog unit.

Gareth Glendor Picton, of no fixed abode, first raided the Poole home of a woman in her 70s on the morning of Thursday, October 12.

The victim discovered her house in Churchfield Road had been burgled, with jewellery, old coins and £150 in cash stolen.

Later that day, Picton was captured on CCTV pawning some of the stolen goods to a jewellers in Poole.

At 12.15pm on Sunday, October 15, a woman in her 30s discovered her handbag was missing from her home in Clarendon Road, Bournemouth.

The victim had been upstairs and last saw the handbag in the hallway. She then realised a glass pane in the front door had been smashed and her car was missing, along with a number of other items, including a laptop.

Just 15 minutes after making the discovery, the victim received a message from her bank that an attempt had been made to use her bank card at a cash machine in Charminster Road.

The request had been denied as the incorrect PIN had been entered.

Moments later, the woman received another message informing her of a further attempt at the Tesco Express in the same road.

When the victim contacted her bank, she was told yet another attempt at accessing the card had been made.

At 12.25pm, the victim's car was seen in Alington Road, Bournemouth, by Dorset Police officers.

A short time later, it was spotted again outside an address in Lonsdale Road. The car was empty and the driver's door open, although the engine was still running.

Officers launched a search of the area with assistance from a police dog handler. Picton, 36, was quickly found in the back garden of a property in Albemarle Road.

Inside the car was a laptop and mobile phone stole during the second burglary.

Picton admitted two offences of burglary, five of fraud and one of taking a vehicle without consent at Bournemouth Crown Court. He has now been sentenced to two years and four months in prison.

Detective Constable Lynda Soutine, of Bournemouth CID, said: “Dorset Police takes burglary offences very seriously as they can be extremely distressing experiences for residents.

“I hope the sentence imposed by the court sends out a message that burglars such as Picton will be dealt with robustly."