Darren Proctor, 26, of Winston Crescent, began a 21-month jail term this week after the force's top canine crimefighter tracked him to the Willes Road basement he had broken into following a late-night attack on a 19-year-old woman.

Jed - who found his man cowering in a cupboard - finally ended the activities of a man who Judge James Pyke said had led a "charmed existence to have avoided a custodial sentence in the past, given his offending".

And for a final flourish, the dogged detective even managed to track back to find the victim's handbag in bushes several streets away.

Proctor pleaded guilty to charges of robbery, criminal damage and breaking a community order at Warwick Crown Court last week.

Prosecutor Louise Pierpoint said that on March 18 Eleanor Moss was in Leamington town centre for the evening with two friends.

After leaving a club at 1.40am they walked to the cashpoint outside the Tesco store.

As they stood by the machine Proctor cycled up to them on the pavement, said 'hello' and grabbed the 19-year-old's bag.

She desperately tried to hang on, but was dragged to the floor as Proctor pulled it from her grasp before cycling off.

A police officer nearby saw the incident and gave chase - but lost the robber

And that's when handler Adrian Langley and his German Shepherd partner Jed stepped in.

Speaking out of court, Pc Langley said: "The chap was clearly desperate to make an escape as he ran through the gardens and then broke into a house with a view to escaping. If somebody is that committed to get away we don't know what may have happened.

"But he is a very focused dog and gives 100 per cent. He will not give up until he has found something. Jed found the man had broken into the basement of a house to try to escape.

"He led me to a very narrow cupboard and kept barking to show he had found something."

Miss Moss's camera was found nearby, and the lens cap was in Proctor's pocket.

When questioned Proctor, who had a number of previous convictions for assault, dishonesty and breaching community orders, made no comment and refused to go on an identity parade.

Shane Crawford, defending, said: "Though the force used is not insignificant, it is not towards the top of the spectrum, and although the complainant suffered injury it is not the type of injury which will be lasting, although I concede she was shaken by this incident."

Sherlock's Nose - More successes from the Jed casebook.

* When he was just 15 months old Jed chased a car thief through gardens in Henley-in-Arden and found him hiding in a ditch, after a man ran from a transit van as police approached.

The van had earlier been stolen in Birmingham. Paul Hamilton, 36, of no fixed address, was jailed for four months.

* Jed's powers of smell were called into action at a pawnbroker's in Regent Street, Leamington, where a burglary had taken place.

He sniffed out a gold locket on the pavement 100 yards from the shop and a discarded jacket in some bushes.

* When armed robbers hit the Kentucky Fried Chicken in Shires Retail Park, Jed quickly came up trumps when he led Pc Langley to a number of bags containing cash lying in the car park.

PC Langley on Jed: "He is wonderful to work with. He has lots of personality and lots of energy and his drive is just awesome. He is little but strong and very athletic. He is very gentle and when you give him work he just switches on, his nose just takes over."