A TEENAGER who broke into the Galashiels home of an 81-year-old woman in the early hours of the morning, has escaped a jail sentence.

Instead, at Selkirk Sheriff Court on Monday, Ben Walkingshaw was given a 12-month Community Payback order with £135 hours of unpaid work.

Walkingshaw has also been ordered to pay the elderly woman, who woke at 4.30am to the noise of footsteps in her home, £250 compensation.

Her husband, who suffers from dementia, was still asleep. She found documents strewn across the floor and broken ornaments.

Walkingshaw’s fingerprints were found on a window, where he had gained entry.

The 18-year-old of North Bughtlin Brae, Edinburgh, admitted breaking into a house in Galashiels, on September 8 last year, with intent to steal.

Defence lawyer Ed Hulme said: ”He appreciates the severity of the charge, and very much regrets his actions.

“He wishes to express his sincere apology,” Sheriff Peter Paterson warned Walkingshaw the sentence was a direct alternative to imprisonment.