Woman comes home to find burglar hung out her washing and cooked meal on her stove

A court heard how Damian Wojnilowicz, 36, broke into the woman's house after she left for work and began carrying out household chores - and even cooked a meal for himself

A bungling burglar hung a woman's washing on the line and cooked himself a meal after breaking into her house, a court has heard.

Damian Wojnilowicz, 36, even wrote his victim a note saying: "Don't worry, be happy" during the bizarre crime. A court heard how Wojnilowicz broke into the woman's house after she left for work and began carrying out the household chores. He cooked himself a meal and helped himself to wine as well as hanging up her washed laundry on the line and tidying up, before also topping up garden bird feeders and rearranged plant pots in her garden.

Prosecutor Alice Sykes, prosecuting, said: "This is a very unusual burglary. There had been the consumption of food and alcohol. The victim spoke to her neighbour who said she had seen someone hanging the washing on the line." Cardiff Crown Court heard he also cleaned floors, emptied a recycling bin, put away shopping and rearranged household items before making his getaway.

She found a note saying: "Don't worry, be happy, eat up and scratch". Ms Sykes said he struck again two weeks later in a similar burglary in Newport when he went into the victims’ summer house. Wojnilowicz washed his clothes and waited for them to dry before again eating the householders' food.

But the victims had security cameras fitted and were able to watch the burglary unfold on their mobile phones while they were stuck in traffic. They contacted a family member who confronted the defendant and asked him to leave and contacted police. Wojnilowicz was arrested shortly after.

“He made flippant and sarcastic comments throughout his interview,” Miss Sykes revealed. The victim of the first burglary in Monmouthshire said: "For two weeks after I was living in a state of high anxiety. "I wondered if it was someone who knew me." She said she was traumatised and had an alarm fitted in her house, while having to pay to replace the stolen food and drink.

The victims of the second raid, in Newport, Gwent, said they felt "sick, horrified and useless" as a result of their experience. Wojnilowicz admitted two counts of burglary. Tabitha Walker, defending, said: "He has expressed remorse for his actions and is sorry to both the complainants and for the harm he has caused them,” she added.

Polish-born Wojnilowicz was jailed for 22 months. Recorder Christian Jowett told him: "This was a significant intrusion in their homes. You pose a significant risk to the public.”