A DNA sample taken from a balaclava thought to be used by masked men raiding a Hampshire home is a billion times more likely to belong to the man accused of burgling the home, a court heard.

Forensic scientist Edward Dowlman told jurors there is a one-in-a-billion chance that the sample tested belonged to anyone other than Christopher Doughty.

But Mr Dowlman told the court he could not rule out that someone else could have worn the mask, or touched a door handle wearing gloves contaminated with Doughty’s skin cells or bodily fluids.

Doughty, 54, of Holly Gardens, Southampton, denies two charges of aggravated burglary and one of being in possession of a loaded firearm in a public place.

He is accused of being involved in break-ins at a house in East Street, Hambleton and in Dumbleton Close, Southampton – where more than £300,000 worth of jewellery and guns were stolen and occupants of both houses were blindfolded, tied up and threatened with violence.

Southampton Crown Court heard how Mr Dowlman analysed samples taken from the mouth area of a balaclava discovered in a van at Doughty’s home.

The scientist told jurors it matched Doughty’s DNA profile and said: “The probability is it is one billion times (1000 million) more likely to come from Mr Doughty.”

He said another sample containing one-and-a-half times more of the same DNA was recovered from a door handle of the burgled house in East Street which he agreed could have been transferred by a gloved hand.

A quantity of other “background DNA” was also found at “low levels” on the handle, but he was unable to determine its source.

Cross examining the scientist, barrister Matthew Jewell, drew evidence from a report by specialist Mark Webster claiming objects kept in Doughty’s van were likely to be contaminated by his DNA, while gloves are often “heavily contaminated” by regular users.

Doughty denies the charges.

Proceeding.