A SOUTHAMPTON man has been charged after police officers responded to reports of a burglary in progress in Ringwood.

A business owner on the Parkside industrial site told police about an alarm activating at around 11.15am last Sunday.

Darren Whitcher, 48, of Pat Bear Close, Southampton, has been charged with one count of theft and one of criminal damage.

He is due to appear at Southampton Magistrates' Court on March 4.