Scream mask traps thief

A man who admitted being armed with a claw hammer when breaking into a home in Newark was arrested after tiny traces of DNA were found in a Scream mask he was wearing.

Mark Holt, 38, of Woodfield Road, Broxtowe, admitted at Nottingham Crown Court to aggravated burglary with unknown accomplices at a flat on Lover’s Lane, Newark, on September 29 last year. Holt also admitted assaulting one of the occupants, Mr Ryan Smith, causing actual bodily harm.



Minuscule traces of DNA were recovered from the Scream mask and matched to Holt’s profile on the national police database.

Judge Dudley Bennett remanded Holt in custody for sentencing on March 12. After the hearing Detective Constable Mike Broddell said: “Holt was caught after tiny traces of his DNA were found on the Scream mask that was found at the scene."