A Chinese man who repeatedly broke into the neighbors home he loved secretly, at one point sneaking out with a bra and some photos, has been let off the hook by a Chinese court.

The man confessed to breaking into the woman's home multiple times, including once while she was sleeping, though he had fled as soon as she woke up said. Police caught him red-handed when walking out of the neighbor's apartment with a key to her door, a bra, two photographs and her MP3 player, the report on Xinhua's English Web site, www.chinaview.cn, said.

But the court dismissed harassment charges against the burglar. It heard that on the times he entered the woman's apartment while she was out, he had washed her dishes, done her laundry, left her snacks and even fixed her computer.

"(The man) said he loved her secretly, but couldn't muster up enough courage to speak to her. He placed a bet with his roommate that he would win her heart," Xinhua said, citing a report in the Shenzhen Daily.

He once planted a note in the apartment reading: "Don't panic. I hope you can understand my feelings for you."

He also told the court he swiped the woman's MP3 player because it was in need of repair, but admitted he "took her bra and photos out of love for her."