A burglar who was caught after a homeowner was alerted to a break in at her Trimley home by an app on her mobile phone has been jailed for more than two years.

The woman, who had two internal cameras in her home to monitor her dogs, was at work when she received an alert on her mobile phone that the dogs were making a noise, Ipswich Crown Court heard.

As she looked at her phone she saw someone in her kitchen and immediately rang her husband and the police were also notified, said Michael Crimp, prosecuting.

Police officers went to Anthony Johnson’s address after tracing a car seen outside the burgled property and recovered items taken during that burglary and other break-ins.

Johnson, 48, of Windermere Road, Felixstowe, admitted burglary at the house in High Road, Trimley St Martin, on March 31 and stealing a computer tablet, a camera, jewellery, a watch and cufflinks.

He also admitted burglary at Gemma’s Crafty Cakes in High Road East, Old Felixstowe, and T&R Pine and Oak in Hamilton Road, Felixstowe. Both burglaries also took place in March.

Johnson also asked for four further offences of burglary to be considered.

Jailing Johnson for three years, less a 20% reduction for his guilty pleas, resulting in a sentence of 875 days, Judge Martyn Levett said he had 12 previous conviction for burglaries at homes and commercial premises.

He said the owner of the house in Trimley St Martin was at work when she witnessed the burglary at her home on a live capture from a CCTV camera which streamed into her mobile phone.

He said she had watched helplessly as Johnson went round her house but was unable to do anything apart from contacting her husband and the police.

He said she had suffered stress and anxiety following the burglary and was now planning to sell her home as she no longer felt safe in the property.

Hannah Sutton, for Johnson, said her client suffered from bi-polar and had a borderline personality disorder.

She said he had committed the offences after stopping his medication and losing his accommodation.