Man breaks into woman's home to arrange her things, throw her garbage, cook her meal
A man from Wales was arrested after breaking into a woman's home and, in a curious turn of events, arranged her things, threw her garbage, and cooked her a meal.
BBC reported that Damian Wojnilowicz, 36, committed the unusual burglary in Monmouthshire county.
The woman, who wasn't named, discovered her house had been broken into but was "left too scared" due to the strange state it was in.
She recalled that items had been moved in the garden, the recycling bin had been emptied, the bird feeders had been refilled, and the plant pots had been moved.
Inside her house, a pair of shoes had been removed from the packaging, a meal had been cooked using supplies from her cupboard, and groceries had been taken from a bag and placed in the fridge, whose contents had been rearranged.
Kitchen utensils had also been placed in the bin, and new ones from the shopping bag had been laid out.
Toothbrush heads had also been replaced and the floor had been cleaned, the mop and bucket left out.
The woman saw that an empty bottle of wine had been placed on a rack, and another bottle had been left out next to a glass and bottle opener. There was also a bowl of sweets on the living room table.
Wojnilowicz also left her a note that read, "Don't worry, be happy, eat up and scratch."
The woman said she was living "in a state of heightened anxiety I had never experienced before" two weeks after the crime.
"I wondered if it was somebody who knew me," she is quoted as saying, "if it was going to turn into a stalking incident, if he knew I lived alone and if I had been targeted."
The woman had to stay with her friend out of fear.
Wojnilowicz committed another burglary at another home days later. The male homeowner received a closed-circuit television alert on his phone showing Wojnilowicz walking on his driveway.
The burglar used the shower to wash and clean his clothes, even leaving the hot tub dirty. Food and drink had also been consumed.
The homeowner, according to BBC, asked his son-in-law to attend the property, and Wojnilowicz appeared to be drunk while holding a glass. The son-in-law asked him to leave and he did so.
Wojnilowicz was arrested later on, and authorities found his DNA on the fingerprints from the woman's house from earlier.
His lawyer Tabitha Walker argued that he was homeless at the time of the offenses and "was undergoing a number of difficulties." Walker noted her client was apologetic to the victims.
He pleaded guilty to two counts of burglary and was sentenced to 22 months in jail. He was also previously convicted of common assault, public order offenses, and failing to surrender.