'Axe-wielding burglar' had locked himself out

A man got a shock after being confronted by police armed with a taser as he tried to break into his own home.

A neighbour raised the alarm after spotting what looked like an axeman smashing a boarded-up window at a flat in Colchester’s Hawthorn Avenue. The worried caller reported a burglary taking place late on Friday night.



But when police arrived they discovered the red-faced ‘burglar’ had simply locked himself out of his own home. The 'axe' was a sledgehammer he had borrowed to try get back into the flat. Police said he was given “words of advice”.

A spokesman added: "We will still rather have the call and attend to find out what is going on than miss the opportunity to catch someone in the act of committing a crime.”