Blundering burglar sends selfie of himself to victim’s colleague

Keast, who had just raided a house in Rotherham, was identified after placing a stolen sim card in a mobile phone and taking a photo of himself, which he unknowingly sent out using the `WhatsApp’ messenger service.

Surprised colleagues of his victim received the message and passed it on to police, who recognised the 25-year-old and soon arrested him along with fellow burglar Anthony Hunt.

Keast, of Norfolk Court, Rotherham, was given a two year and eight month jail term yesterday at Sheffield Crown Court, while Hunt, 27, from Garbroads Crescent, Thrybergh, was sentenced to 18 months for burglary.

The pair, who pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing, broke into a couple’s house at Fernleigh Drive, Brinsworth, while they were on holiday on 11 September, 2013.

When the householder returned days later, he found the rear patio door had been forced and that electrical items, sentimental jewellery and an Audi A4, together worth around £27,000, had been stolen.

The car was found crashed a short time afterwards at nearby Centenary Way and had suffered extensive damage.

On the night of the offence the culprits had borrowed a friend’s car to apparently buy cigarettes but instead committed the burglary. After police recognised Keast’s image a stolen Rolex watch worth £4,000 was found behind a radiator at his flat and returned to the victim.

Pc Adam Broughton, of South Yorkshire Police, said: “The result of this case should act as a deterrent to would-be offenders who should think twice about committing such offences.”

‘Selfie’, defined as a self-portrait photograph taken with a hand-held digital camera or camera phone, was named word of the year in 2013 by Oxford Dictionaries editors.