A TEENAGER who was caught with a fake Rolex watch stolen in a house burglary over Christmas, has been jailed for eight months.

Daniel Latham was on early release from prison when he was found with the replica timepiece which had been taken from a property in Marlborough.

Claire Marlow, prosecuting, told Swindon Crown Court how the break-in took place while the occupant was away over the festive period.

As well as the watch the raiders also made off with an assortment of other items including TVs, jewellery, computers and other electrical equipment.

She said a few weeks later, in January, police went to the house Latham was sharing with Harley Webb and searched the address.

The defendant was found with the watch, which she said the owner had told officers was of no real value as it was not genuine.

Latham, formerly of Penhill Drive, pleaded guilty to a charge of handling stolen goods.

He had been accused of taking part in the raid on the large detached property on Leaze Road but prosecutors dropped the charge after he admitted handling the items.

The court heard he was on early release for attempted robbery and actual bodily harm when the offence took place.

Latham received 16 months in June last year after head butting a youth in a hostel as he and a friend tried to rob two teenagers.

Paul Trotman, defending, said Latham had been returned to prison for breaching his licence and served the rest of the earlier sentence.

He said he had been in custody for 20 days after finishing that sentence which will come off anything he receives for the handling.

Mr Trotman said the probation officer writing the pre-sentence report had got the wrong end of the stick by referring to the watch as ‘high value’.

“My client tells me he paid £20 for the watch. He was simply going to keep it for his own use. Perhaps £20 may be the correct value as it was a fake Rolex,” he said.

He said the matter was Latham’s first offence as an adult and asked the court to impose a suspended sentence.

Passing sentence, Judge Douglas Field said: “There are three aggravating features in this case. The first is that you committed this offence while on licence.

“The second is that the watch was the proceeds of this serious domestic burglary and the third is you were in possession of this watch in fairly close proximity to the burglary. Therefore it crosses the custody threshold.”

As well as imposing an eight month jail term he also told him he must pay a £100 surcharge.

Harley Webb, 24, of Croft Road, Swindon, was jailed for 58 months at Gloucester Crown Court after admitting a string of burglaries including the one the watch came from.