A thief who ransacked a charity’s base was snared by police – because he dropped a cigarette end at the scene of the crime.
Kevin Ritchie stole equipment worth hundreds of pounds from the Horizons Resource Centre in Elgin.
And traces of the bungling 49-year-old’s DNA were found on a cigarette he left beside a computer at premises.
Yesterday, he was jailed for eight months for the raid on the centre, which is run as a safe haven for vulnerable adults.
Fiscal Kevin Corrins told Elgin Sheriff Court Ritchie forced open a window as he broke in between the afternoon of Monday, April 11, and the following morning.
Mr Corrins added: “When the manager arrived that day she noticed that a rear window had been forced open and it was clear someone had been in the property.
“She discovered that the place had been ransacked – the contents of kitchen cupboards were emptied on to the floor and filing cabinets had been damaged.
“A mobile phone with client details on it was stolen, and a computer tower had been dismantled and parts removed from it.”
Mr Corrins said the manager also realised that digital cameras had been taken, and called the police.
Officers who examined the crime scene found a “curled up cigarette” behind one of the computer bases which had been taken apart.
They later sent it for forensic examination, and DNA checks provided a match with Ritchie.
Police searched the home of his brother – where he was staying at the time – but the items stolen from Horizons were never recovered.
Ritchie admitted breaking into the Duffus Road premises and stealing six digital cameras, a laptop, a computer tower, computer parts, a set of keys and £110 in cash.
He appeared in court from custody, having been remanded after his arrest on Tuesday, May 17.
His agent, solicitor Stephen Carty, said Ritchie had been addicted to drugs for “a substantial part of his adult life”.
The lawyer added: “He can only apologise to the owners of the property for his behaviour.”
Sheriff Olga Pasportnikov jailed Ritchie for eight months. backdated to when he was detained in May.
Last night, Elgin City North councillor Patsy Gowans, who is one of Horizons’ biggest backers, condemned Ritchie for stealing from the charity.
She said: “It’s good that police found out who did this, and that they will now pay for their crime.
“But, mentally, you never fully get over something like that – and we have to remember that this is a mental health project.
“Services like Horizons have limited funding and this will have had an impact on them financially as well as in terms of morale.”
The resource centre is run by the Moray Anchor Project, and its eight employees hold drop-in sessions which help about 80 adults in the area.
