A DISHONEST builder couldn’t believe his luck when a hoard of jewellery and cash rained down on him while he was replacing the ceiling at a Bradford house.

Viktar Badzo, who was on the run from the police in his native Slovakia, stole the shoe box containing the family’s £72,500 nest egg when it fell from under the floorboards in an upstairs bedroom.

Badzo, 33, of Falcon Street, Great Horton, Bradford, pawned the jewellery and sent the money to his family in Slovakia, Bradford Crown Court heard yesterday.

He admitted stealing the hoard belonging to Fasal Hussain and his family from their address in Durham Road, Girlington, on October 17.

Badzo, who was jailed for ten months, will be extradited after serving his sentence when a European Arrest Warrant outstanding against him is activated. Prosecutor Bashir Ahmed said he would then serve a 15 month prison sentence for house burglary imposed by a court in Slovakia.

Mr Ahmed told the court that Mr Hussain asked a friend to do renovation work at his home and that man hired Badzo to assist in taking down a ceiling.

Badzo replastered the ceiling after stealing the shoe box and the theft was not discovered for several days.

Confronted by the builder and the family, he immediately confessed, saying: “I am really sorry. I got greedy when I worked. The box fell from the ceiling.”

Badzo said the money went on clothes for his family in Slovakia and he pawned the jewellery. He went with the police to the shops in Leeds in a bid to recover it.

Mr Hussain told the police the shoe box contained the family’s life savings.

Badzo’s solicitor advocate, Ray Singh, said: “One can just see the headlines ‘It’s raining jewellery’!”

Mr Singh told the court: “He wasn’t there to steal. The box fell out and he was amazed at the value of the items in it. Temptation came his way and he stole it.”

He added: “The defendant could well have denied this matter and there would have been little evidence to link him with the offence. There were several people working at the property.

“He did not then go out and get drunk, he gave the cash to his family and he only received a couple of thousand pounds for the jewellery at the pawnbrokers.”

Judge Colin Burn told Badzo: “Literally, this property fell into your hands but you must, of course, have realised it was of high value, and high emotional value, to somebody.”

Badzo, who is in Leeds Prison, will have four months left to serve behind bars in the UK before being extradited to Slovakia.

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