A SOUTHAMPTON doctor grappled with a heroin addict who had broken into his sister’s home next door in a desperate attempt to steal something to help fund his habit.

Dr Jawad Khan was alerted to the drama by his son who had been staying with his aunt and heard noises.

Getting out of bed, he looked through a crack in the open door of his aunt’s bedroom and saw serial offender Darren Jones rifling through a bedside table drawer.

Cycling Prosecutor Dawn Hyland told Southampton Crown Court Jones had been cycling past her home in Portswood shortly after 9am when he saw her reverse her car down her drive and leave.

He doubled back, entered a passage between the two houses before smashing a small porch window and force the front door.

Jones then went straight upstairs into her room and was going through the drawer when her nephew walked past and his shouting alerted his father who rushed barefoot next door to investigate. He arrived just as Jones was attempting to leave but the door had jammed because of the damage.

Struggled The two men then struggled – with Dr Khan cutting himself on the broken glass and being elbowed in the stomach – until the police arrived. They had to kick in the door to arrest Jones who then claimed three other men had burgled the house and he had only gone into the property to investigate.

Jones, 35, of Richmond Gardens, Southampton, admitted burglary, which the court heard was committed while he was on licence from prison for a similar offence.

Jailing him for 40 months, Recorder Andrew Langdon QC described the break-in as “unpleasant and nasty” as he tried to steal something to feed his heroin problem which had blighted his life as well as those of his victims.

In mitigation, Chris Gaiger said the burglary was opportunistic.

“It was a desperate act, given his long-standing drug problem, having used heroin since he was 20 and which has really got the better of him. He needs intensive help for him to get rid of that affliction.”