A burglar who raided a cemetery tool shed was caught two years later when his fingerprints were taken for a separate crime.

Scott Craig Henry, 22, plundered gardening equipment worth more than £1,300 which was used to keep Alderley Edge graveyard tidy.

Henry committed the burglary at the cemetery lodge with two other men to pay off a drug debt in September 2009, it was said.

He got away with the crime for two years – until he was caught for an unrelated offence in September last year.

Henry, of Shackleton Avenue, Blackley, Manchester, pleaded guilty to burglary. Macclesfield magistrates heard the defendant and two others stole a plant sprayer, a leaf blower and a hedge cutter worth £1,366. The other offenders were not caught.

Toby Wilbraham, defending, said his client was caught drink driving and gave his fingerprints, which matched some found at the cemetery lodge.

He told the court Henry had now turned his life around and worked for a flower and plant supplier in Manchester.

Henry said he only took the leaf blower worth £582 while the other two men took the rest of the gear. He was given a 12-month community order with supervision and 100 hours’ unpaid work.

He was also ordered to pay £400 compensation for the goods stolen.

A CPS spokesman later confirmed Henry had been disqualified for 12 months and fined £200 after admitting the drink driving offence at Manchester Magistrates’ Court.