A burglar who broke into a Chatham theatre, made himself a cup of tea and then fell asleep, has been jailed.
Adrian Edwards, of no fixed address, was sentenced to one year and four months in prison after pleading guilty to the break-in.
He also admitted a charge of possessing class B drugs and was jailed at Maidstone Crown Court on Thursday 1 July 2021.
The 46-year-old was charged by investigators after he was found to have broken into the Central Theatre in the High Street, at around 6am on Monday 19 April 2021.
After he broke into the premises and made himself a hot drink he then stole a laptop, drill and trainers, before laying down and falling asleep.
He was later disturbed by an employee who had started work, and quickly left the building with the stolen items.
Patrols were alerted to the incident and, following enquiries that included the examination of CCTV footage, Edwards was arrested later the same day. Officers also seized a psychoactive substance in his possession.
Later forensic examination of blood found near a window and of open cans of drink and cigarettes Edwards had discarded at the theatre, found a match to his DNA. Officers also recovered some medication at the scene in his name.
CID investigator, Karendeep Khaira, said: ‘This was a brazen burglary that was undermined when Edwards carelessly fell asleep at the scene.
‘He had thought he had time to make himself a cup of tea while stealing other people’s property but only succeeded in leaving a trail of evidence that allowed our officers to swiftly detain him and bring him to justice. I hope his sentence acts as a deterrent to others.’