A MAN has been handed a community order after he was caught handling a stolen laptop when the device’s webcam captured him on film.

Daniel Varandas, of Wilberforce Street, pleaded guilty to handling stolen goods when he appeared at South East Suffolk Magistrates’ Court last week.

Varandas was arrested by police after he was photographed on the victim’s stolen laptop.

Magistrates sentenced Varandas to 120 hours’ unpaid work and ordered him to pay �50 costs.

Two laptops were stolen in a burglary in Tuddenham Avenue on Wednesday, January 4.

The victim managed to identify who was in possession of his belongings after gaining remote access to his laptop.

This allowed him to install a program that identified the location of his laptop and took photographs through his webcam of the person using it.

The victim then passed the information on to officers who identified the offender and arrested him.

Both laptops were recovered and returned to the victim.

Dc Donna Whelan-Smith, of the Ipswich Crime Investigation Department who investigated the burglary, said: “This crime shows that taking extra precautions to protect your property can be very effective.

“Not only did the program help to return the stolen items to the victim, but it also provided key evidence that led to prosecuting Varandas.”