Bungling burglar found hiding from police in a bin in Oldham

Police have jailed a man they found hiding in a bin after a burglary in Oldham.

Lee Ullah was wearing the coat of the woman he’d stolen from when officers found him.

The 47-year-old, of no fixed abode, had previously smashed his way into another property through the roof.

Ullah has now been jailed for three years and nine months.

He pleaded guilty to two counts of burglary and criminal damage on 15 February at Manchester Minshull Street Court.

Police were first called to reports of a burglary at Robinson Street in Chadderton by a victim who woke up at 6am to find Ullah inside her house.

The victim noticed her TV was missing during the incident on Thursday 25 November and, after confronting the burglar, he fled the scene wearing her coat.

Officers in Oldham later found the burglar hiding in the bin, still wearing the coat.

He had also tried to burgle a house on Whitstable Close, smashing a large hole in the roof of a building and climbing through, causing £10,000 worth of damage.

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Ullah has also been charged for a commercial burglary on Yorkshire Street on 7 July 2021.

In that incident, he caused £10,000 worth of damage and stole property worth £10,000.

He was found to have been trying to sell one of the items at a local shop.

The investigation and subsequent charges were carried out by GMP’s Oldham Divisional Crime Team.

Featured image: GMP / Unsplash