Preston burglar left DNA at St Annes shop

11:10am Tuesday 19th August 2008

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A desperate Preston burglar who smashed his way into Woolworths at St Annes left behind a major clue following the raid.

Nabil Malik gained entry by hurling a slab of concrete through the frontage of the branch.

But he cut himself on glass, allowing police to recover his DNA from shards found at the scene.

Once inside the store he stole a £99 Nintendo games system.

Malik, 34, of Walton View, Preston, was given a suspended jail term by a judge at Preston Crown Court after he pleaded guilty to burglary last May.

The offence happened at about 2.30am and the store alarm went off after the front door had been smashed.

Mr Francis McEntee, prosecuting, said the glass was smashed by a hooded man swinging a weighted bag through it.

The defendant was seen on CCTV heading towards the counter tills before he found the Nintendo gaming system.

On going out of the store he left behind a black bag containing a block of concrete.

Mr McEntee told the court: "The defendant also managed to leave traces of blood on sharp edges of glass.

"When the clean up was taking place, pieces of glass were handed over to a forensic officer.

"When an analysis was done, his blood was found on the broken edges of glass."

Malik had 61 previous offences on his record, including six convictions for burglary.

Four involved commercial premises, but his last burglary had been in 2002.

Miss Julie Taylor, defending, said Malik was in debt at the time, unable to get a job and did not know what other way he could get some money.

He had managed to keep out of trouble for two years beforehand.

Miss Taylor told the court: "He and his family lived near the railway station at St Annes at the time and he has been on a curfew for 15 months since the offence.

"The offence was a minor blip in a new leaf that he had turned over."

But in passing sentence, the judge, Recorder Arthur Noble, told Malik: "It was not a minor blip, because in a calculated way you took concrete and smashed the window of Woolworths, with a view to alleviating your own financial position.

The defendant was given 40 weeks prison, suspended for two years, with 18 months supervision and a requirement to undertake a Think First programme.