A burglar has been jailed for almost two years for carrying out a “mean and unpleasant” break-in while a couple slept upstairs.

David Parker crept into a property in Bury St Edmunds and stole a rucksack, laptop, wallet and purse containing bank cards, which he used make a series of fraudulent purchases later that morning.

The 45-year-old was sentenced at Ipswich Crown Court on Tuesday after admitting burglary and eight counts of fraud at a plea hearing the previous week.

Judge Rupert Overbury said the woman whose house Parker broke into had shown “extraordinary compassion” in feeling sorry for his circumstances.

The court heard that Parker, of Lancaster Avenue, Bury St Edmunds, had convictions for a series of offences dating back to 1994, including burglaries carried out to feed an addiction to drugs.

The latest took place on June 14 in Maynewater Square, between midnight and 6.46am, when he made the first of eight purchases totalling £132 from local shops.

Prosecutor Michael Crimp said the female occupant was left feeling unsafe and unable to sleep, and had blamed herself for leaving a back door unlocked.

Mr Crimp said the stolen laptop contained degree coursework and precious photos of the woman’s children, while the purse held significant sentimental value.

In a statement read to the court, she said: “I feel sorry for whatever circumstances led him to break in, but the things he took meant more than their monetary value.”

Dan Taylor, mitigating, said Parker’s appalling record was motivated by drug addiction but that, when not under the influence, he presented as articulate and able to understand the impact of his offending.

Mr Taylor said Parker had been weaning myself off methadone in custody, where he had completed a relapse prevention course and was hoping to be transferred to enter an intensive pilot programme of rehabilitation later in the year.

Judge Overbury called the offences “mean and downright unpleasant”, but said he hoped Parker’s ambition to change was genuine.

Parker was jailed for a total of 45 months, including concurrent sentences for two shoplifting offences he admitted before magistrates at an earlier hearing.

They took place in Bury St Edmunds on June 11, when Parker stole toiletries and perfume worth £750 from Boots, and clothing worth £386 from M&S.