Sheffield burglar caught sleeping in car he stole
A burglar who was caught after nodding off in a car he stole has been jailed for four years.
Wayne Smith, of Raisen Hall Road, Longley, was also found to be in possession of a knife when officers found him asleep with the engine still running on September 24, 2025.
The car, a red Skoda Fabia, was stolen in a burglary in the Crookes area of Sheffield on September 19.
Smith had forced his way into the home overnight and officers were later able to match a footwear mark he had left on the windowsill with the footwear he was wearing at the time of his arrest.
The 46-year-old was further linked to an attempted break-in on September 22 near Broomhall where he was caught on CCTV in the garden of the property - and was seen leaving the area in a red Skoda.
Two days later (September 24), South Yorkshire Police received an anonymous call reporting a man asleep in a car with the engine still running.
Officers arrived and found Smith asleep in the driver's seat.
A further search of the car led to a large knife being recovered.
Smith pleaded guilty to burglary and theft, theft of a motor vehicle, attempted burglary, possessing a knife in a public place and going equipped for burglary.
He was sentenced at Sheffield Crown Court on January 15, where he was jailed for a total of four years and three months.
Speaking after the sentencing, Detective Sergeant Tom Jordan said: "Wayne Smith posed an obvious risk to the community of Sheffield by choosing to carry a knife on top of his brazen offending and I'm pleased he will now be spending a significant amount of time behind bars.
"Burglary has a long lasting impact on victims and we work hard every single day to identify offenders, link incidents together, and bring those responsible to justice.
"We take every single report extremely seriously and I hope this recent sentence shows we won't stop until prolific offenders such as Smith have no choice but to plead guilty to their crimes."