Christopher Badman was caught on CCTV at the Marine Hotel Porthcawl
A BURGLAR who thought he'd be able to beat a hotel's CCTV system by wearing a carrier bag over his head removed his 5p disguise at the wrong time - and looked straight into a camera, a court has heard
Christopher Badman can be seen on the footage stumbling from room-to-room of the Marine Hotel Porthcawl, looking for items to steal.
But the 37-year-old's plastic plan fell apart when he removed the bag and looked directly into one of the CCTV's cameras.
Badman, from Brackla, Bridgend, was jailed for 16 months when he appeared at Cardiff Crown Court.
The court heard that bag-wearing Badman raided the hotel in the early hours of September 27 this year while the seaside town was busy with its annual Elvis festival.
He was captured on CCTV walking through the hotel's corridors and going into guests' rooms - but was disturbed by one of his victim's who woke to find him trying to steal his laptop computer.
Badman made off from the scene but was arrested at his partner's house a few days later, having been identified by South Wales Police detective Darren Bowen who was given the CCTV footage to view.
Detective inspector Andy Paddison said the bag-buglar was caught through a combination of technology and local knowledge.
He said: "The CCTV initially shows Christopher Badman walking through corridors and he goes to some trouble to ensure he isn't identified by the cameras by walking around with a carrier bag on his head.
"Then, for some reason, he decides to look straight into the camera from just a few feet away from the lens, and of course, his cover was blown.
"CCTV can be extremely effective in the prevention and detection of crime. Badman's concentration slipped for a split second, and that led to his arrest – police officers know who commits crime on their patch."
Badman was also ordered to pay £900 prosecution costs and a £100 surcharge at court.
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