A CAR thief has been jailed after officers’ discovery of his footprints in the snow led to his arrest.

Daniel Henderson, 21, of The Glebe, Runcorn, appeared at Chester Magistrates' Court on Thursday after being charged with theft of a motor vehicle.

Henderson pleaded guilty, and was sentenced to two months imprisonment. He was also ordered to pay a £154 surcharge.

This also triggered a previous conviction, which led to his recall to prison.

The court heard how the owner of a black Ford Fiesta had reported it stolen from her property in Frodsham in Tuesday evening.

In the early hours of Wednesday, officers on regular patrol spotted the stolen vehicle travelling on Halton Brook Avenue, Runcorn.

After following the Ford Fiesta, occupants of the vehicle exited while the car was still in motion, causing the car to roll into the wall at the entrance of Town Park.

Police chased the occupants into the park but lost sight of them.

Due to a new layer of snow falling, officers observed a distinctive set of footprints on the ground of the vehicle. Police then followed the distinctive footprints to an address nearby.

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Officers knocked on the address and were let in by the occupant. Henderson appeared and the soles of the shoes he was wearing matched the footprints officers had been tracking.

Henderson was subsequently arrested on suspicion of theft of a motor vehicle and charged.

Detective Sergeant Stu Needham said: “This case shows that, even in this modern age, sometimes all you need is to do is to follow the clues laid out in front of you.

“Henderson had no choice but to plead guilty to the offence put to him and will now have some time behind bars to think about the consequences of his actions on the evening of 17 January.

“We will continue to do all we can to track down those intent on causing harm to our communities and I hope that this is acts as a deterrent to others who think they can get away with committing crime in our area.

“I also welcome the efficiency in dealing with this case which has allowed us to get justice for the victim efficiently.”

The Runcorn man has previously been found guilty of arson and burglary of a Runcorn archery club. He was part of a gang of men who stole bows and arrows, money power tools, a vending machine, and then started a fire which caused £50,000 in damages to the archery club.

Henderson was described by a judge as the “ringleader” of this robbery.

He then committed a further crime whilst on the way to court for the arson and burglary of the archery club, when he appeared at the house of Wayne Davenport, who has previously been found guilty of manslaughter over the death of a two-year-old toddler.

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He then proceeded to threaten Davenport and his partner at the time with a golf club.

The partner had no connection to Davenport’s previous conviction.

Henderson swung a golf club at the pair, threatening to kill Davenport and burn their house to the ground.

He was found guilty of affray and, in addition to his guilty plea for arson and robbery, received a total of 27 months in jail.