A mother and daughter have been left with sleepless nights after a burglar broke into their home.
David Cox, 41, has been sentenced to 876 days in prison after breaking into a house in North Shields and startling the teenage occupant.
The home owner had briefly popped out on the morning of July 7 when Cox forced entry to their home, but unbeknown to him, the victim’s 13-year-old daughter was still in the property.
Cox moved around the house searching for items of value to steal, including a bank card, jewellery, mobile phone and a watch. He then headed upstairs where the teenager was sitting in her bedroom – unaware of the intruder.
Once upstairs, Cox entered the girl’s room and upon seeing her quickly bolted from the house where he was confronted by a neighbour who alerted police shortly before the mother returned.
Cox, of Market Place, Morpeth, was arrested a short time later – after using the stolen bank card to buy alcohol. He was subsequently charged with burglary and fraud – later pleading guilty to both offences when he appeared in court before being sentenced last Tuesday
