A bungling crook has been jailed for three years after leaving his mobile phone behind at the scene of his crime.
James Greenshields stole jewellery including a £2,000 engagement ring and an elderly widow's late husband's watch during a series of raids. But the hapless housebreaker was caught after failing to notice he had dropped his £1,000 Samsung Flip while robbing an 80-year-old woman.
Sheriff David Hall said: "You have a bad record and these two housebreakings were committed in broad daylight. One of your victims was 42 and the other was 80 years of age. In the first house you stole jewellery with a value of just under £3,000.
"That included a £2,000 engagement ring, which would have been of emotional and sentimental value to its owner. In the second house you stole a watch which belonged to the householder's late husband and clearly that would have had a devastating effect because of the high sentimental value and it clearly cannot be replaced."
Fiscal depute Michael Dunlop told Perth Sheriff Court: "The owner of the first house noticed mud on the carpets and stairs. There was broken glass in the kitchen. She noticed jewellery from the bedroom was missing including a £2,000 engagement ring."
Mr Dunlop said the 80-year-old widow was alone in her home when Greenshields targeted it for his second raid in Kinross a few hours later. He said the pensioner slightly opened a window in the laundry room and then spent 15 minutes on the phone with her daughter.
She returned to the washing room and found clothes on the floor, which she initially thought had been blown over by the wind.
He added: "She found a Samsung Flip phone on the floor and initially thought it belonged to her granddaughter, so she put it aside. Some costume jewellery and a watch worth £150 which had belonged to her deceased husband were missing. She realised someone had been in and also stolen medication."
Police officers found a recently-used number on the phone and were able to trace it back to Greenshields who was arrested a short time later. CCTV footage taken near the scene of the first raid in Kinross on 12 January 2022 showed Greenshields near the property before and after the robbery.
Solicitor Larry Flynn, defending, said Greenshields had claimed he would try and recover the goods and return them but was unable to. None were recovered. Mr Flynn said his client planned to move back to Glasgow from Fife after being released from prison as he wanted to "start afresh" upon being freed.
Sheriff Hall imposed 18-month sentences for both offences and ordered that they be served consecutively.
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