Pine needle trail sees Christmas tree thief caught

A bungling burglar who tried to steal Christmas trees from a nursery has been caught -- after police simply followed a trail of pine needles.

Officers from West Yorkshire Police say they just had to follow the fallen green spikes for half a mile to get their man.

Five trees had been pinched from Park House Nurseries in Spenborough and sure enough after following the needle that's what they found dumped in a garden.

A police spokesman said: "The foliage led officers to a house where the stolen trees were found and recovered. As an extra present, officers also found a cannabis farm at the address."

A spokesperson from the nursery said the trees had been marketed as low needle drop trees… but had still dropped enough for them to follow.