Police in Edinburgh have charged a man in connection with over forty housebreakings to homes in the north east of the city.

The 27-year-old man was arrested and charged in November for five housebreakings.

Following extensive enquiries into a number of other incidents and recovered property by Edinburgh’s Community Investigation Unit (CIU) and the Search & Recovery Team, he was subsequently charged in connection with a further 41 incidents.

The break-ins took place in the Mountcastle, Craigentinny and Portobello areas between May and November 2018.

Around £11,000 worth of stolen property, including jewellery dating back to 1904 and passed down through generations, has since been recovered and reunited with it’s rightful owners.

The 27-year-old is currently remanded and awaiting trial for these offences.

Detective Inspector Bob Campbell of the CIU said: “Having your home broken into can be an extremely distressing experience and we remain committed to tackling break-ins.

“We will use all resources at our disposal to fully investigate every line of enquiry available to us, and bring perpetrators of these crimes before the courts. “