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Canadian ranch owners find intruder sitting on their sofa drinking coffee, after feeding cat and showering

Christopher Hiscock described the ranch in court as "beautiful" 

Kashmira Gander
Wednesday 30 September 2015 17:50 BST
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Kamloops in British Columbia Canada, where the ranch is located
Kamloops in British Columbia Canada, where the ranch is located (CliveRichey/Creative Commons)

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"Last night I had a fire in the house. It was so [peaceful]. I slept like a little baby,” Christopher Hiscock gushed in his diary of his stay at an idyllic ranch in British Colombia, Canada.

But the 33-year-old, who fed the cats, prepared a meal, and showered at the property, did not know the owners of the ranch where he had made himself at home.

Hiscock’s pleasant stay came to an abrupt end when the residents of the ranch in Little Fort, north of Kamploops, found him on their sofa by a roaring fire, with a coffee cup in in his hand, Crown lawyer Mike Wong told the Canadian Press.

Following his impromptu visit, Mr Hiscock, of Nova Scotia, pleaded guilty in court on Monday to possession of stolen property and being unlawfully in a dwelling house.

The incident unfolded after Hiscock left his Nova Scotian home earlier in September and headed west in search of work, thinking he would soon be laid off from his seasonal job at a swimming pool company, the court heard.

With his funds running low, Hiscock found the unoccupied home as he travelled in a stolen truck from Marie Ontario.

The intruder apologised in court, but reiterated how the ranch had affected him.

“Beautiful ranch,” he said. “Gorgeous. I was driving and I just turned in. Beautiful place.”

A judge handed Hisckok a one-year probation term, and banned him from contacting the residents of the ranch and the owner of the Ontario truck.

The incident comes after a woman who reached under her bed to find her two cats felt the human skin of a burglar instead of the fur of her pets.

The man quickly fled the 61-year-old’s Palm Springs, Florida, home, and leapt over a fence, according to police.

The woman said a digital camera and a gold ankle bracelet had been stolen from her home.

Police later arrested Christian Vatovec, 25, of Lake Worth.

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