A Carshalton man who burgled an Epsom home while two young children slept has been jailed.

Christopher Ashman, 34, of Ferndale Crescent, was found guilty on September 4 by a majority verdict following a trial at Guildford Crown Court.

The jury heard how he broke into the property in Lansdowne Road during March this year and took a set of car keys, purse, handbag, and laptop.

Both vehicles which were in the driveway – a black Audi A3 and grey Mercedes CLS – were taken, while the home’s occupants, including two children, were asleep in bed.

But the Mercedes was fitted with a tracker and later located roughly a mile away in Gainsborough Road.

A pair of pliers, which did not belong to the vehicle’s owners, were discovered by officers in its rear seat and found to have Ashman’s DNA on them.

The jury also heard how the 34-year-old broke into another home, in Furze Hill, Kingswood, last November where he stole several items.

These included a standalone safe containing watches, jewellery, cash, and “very sentimental” family heirlooms from the master bedroom.

Surrey Police officers discovered a screwdriver at the scene which did not below to the occupants of the home.

It was after the object was forensically examined that Ashman’s DNA was also found on it.

He was arrested for the Epsom burglary in April and, after officers searched his car, found a purse that matched the one stolen during the break-in.

Ashman was found guilty of two burglaries and theft of a motor vehicle in Kingswood and Epsom at the trial on September 4.

He was also found guilty of possession of herbal cannabis.

The 34-year-old was subsequently sentenced to four years in prison.

PC Joe Brown, who investigated the burglaries, said: “Ashman has broken into two houses and stolen a significant amount of property, including two cars.

“He was brazen enough in one of the burglaries to break in while the occupants were asleep upstairs. However, he has not been clever enough to cover his tracks and has left behind tools he used to break in to both properties with his DNA all over them.

“This gave us the forensic evidence we needed to arrest and subsequently charge him with these crimes.

“I hope that the sentence given to Ashman this week will send out a strong message that we will not tolerate burglaries being committed in our local communities and that we will do everything possible to identify those responsible for these offences.”