A COUNCILLOR fears he may have been deliberately targeted by burglars who broke into his office.

The burglars smashed a window to break into the office at County Hall, Durham, which is used by Independent councillor John Shuttleworth.

They emptied out his filing cabinet and left papers scattered on the floor.

The only item stolen was a bottle of Calvin Klein aftershave taken from a drawer.

Coun Shuttleworth said that orange juice had been poured down the back of a computer monitor, but other electrical equipment such as PCs and a television were untouched.

The burglars also ignored filing cabinets used by two other councillors who share the office.

Coun Shuttleworth, who represents Weardale, said: "I have upset a lot of people and it is as if somebody was looking for something specific. It is bizarre.

"If it was just kids, surely they would go through everything and look in the other filing cabinets that are in there."

He added: "I have got all sorts of stuff in that filing cabinet. It just so happens that I tidied it out last week and chucked a lot of stuff away.

"The problem is that I probably won't know whether something is missing until I need it."

Coun Shuttleworth believes the burglars must have known the layout of the building and may have had to use ladders to clamber onto a roof in order to get access to the window.

Police are investigating the break-in which was discovered at 7.30am on Tuesday and security camera footage from around the building is being examined.

Fingerprints that were left at the scene are also being analysed.