'Revenge' burglar's DNA found on cheese at Cardiff house

A bungling burglar who targeted the home of his ex girlfriend's mother in a "revenge attack" was caught after his DNA was found on a block of cheese.

Jilted Jamie Simmonds, 29, left a trail of cheese crumbs when he stole a block of Red Leicester from the Cardiff home.

The city's crown court heard victim Lynn Patterson awoke to find broken glass and cheese on the floor.

Simmonds, from Canton, Cardiff, admitted burglary and was sentenced to 16 months in prison.

Prosecutor Rachel Knight described the raid as a "revenge attack" because Simmonds was not getting the attention he wanted from former girlfriend Molly Patterson.

"There is an element of targeting, of planning and he was in dispute with the family at the time," she said.

In a victim statement, Molly Patterson said: "I feel guilty because I think he did this to get back at me.

"I feel like it's my fault. I'm sorry this has happened to my mother."

Peter Wormald, defending, described the offence as "crude and unsophisticated".

Sentencing, Judge Eleri Rees handed Simmonds a restraining order preventing him from contacting the victim's family.

Addressing the defendant, she said: "You have an awful record and you have become a petty thief."