Bar Burglar Busted By Police After Falling Asleep Next To Half-Eaten Cheesecake

Police responding to a report of a break-in at a bar and restaurant found the burglar asleep at the scene next to a half-eaten cheesecake.

Mark Cooper, 41, was roused by the arresting officers on Saturday morning in Sunderland, England, and jailed for 26 weeks by magistrates on Monday, Northumbria Police said.

Officers were alerted to a break-in at 808 Bar & Kitchen in St. Thomas Street in the city, where raiders had broken into the empty till and stolen food and alcohol.

The police arrived within four minutes and found Cooper fast asleep on the floor, along with the half-eaten cheesecake.

Video from an officer's body-worn camera showed him looking bewildered and shouting “whoa, whoa, whoa" to the police, one of whom tells him to “wake up."

When Cooper appeared to ask what was happening, he was told:

“You broke into a bar, man."

Bungling burglar Mark Cooper was found asleep at the scene of his crime, next to a half-eaten cheesecake (Northumbria Police/PA)

He was cuffed and taken into custody and on Monday, Cooper, of Victoria Place, Sunderland, admitted burglary when he appeared before magistrates in South Tyneside, who jailed him for 26 weeks.

After the case, Detective Constable Catherine Gibson said:

“This burglary clearly proved to be tiring work for Cooper, and it's safe to say he was brought back to the real world with a bump when awoken by our officers."

Officers are continuing to investigate others thought to have been involved in the break-in.