An Australian businesswoman had thousands of dollars worth of jewellery stolen by a teenager who broke into her holiday home in Thailand.

Toni Hughes, 40, from New South Wales, left the property in Pattaya on November 15. When she returned a day later, she found her watch and jewellery, estimated to be worth more than 156,406 AUD, to be missing.

Toni checked the security camera and found a teenager had raided the house while she was away.

CCTV footage shows the 14-year-old searching through the cabinets of the villa. He carried a sack on his shoulder and used a flashlight to see through the dark.

Toni reported the crime to Pattaya City Police Station to help her find her stolen Cartier bracelets, a designer watch worth 57,792 AUD, and a Rolex watch worth 26,673 AUD.

Other missing items included two gold necklaces worth 35,564 AUD, a gold ring worth 2,000 AUD, a pair of gold earrings worth 4,445 AUD, along with luxury bags, Buddhist amulets, and other accessories.

Police believe the total haul was worth more than 350,000 AUD.

Investigating officer Police Lieutenant Colonel Chainarong Jitsunthorn said: 'We used the CCTV footage as a lead. We later caught the thief, a Laos national boy, hiding behind the Wat Nang Oo temple.'

Authorities found and arrested the teenager four miles (6km) away from the property. He was reportedly taken to the police station while the missing items were still in his bag.

The police officer added: 'We found all the missing items inside the boy's bag and brought him to the station. We also collected his DNA sample for the case.'

Toni met the youngster at the station who pleaded with her not to pursue the case after admitting to stealing.

Police Lieutenant Colonel Chainarong said the teenager was a repeat offender who escaped juvenile detention.

He said: 'He had been arrested on November 11 for burglary and was sent to a children's shelter in Banglamung district, where the victim did not press charges against him.

'We sent him to the shelter to be questioned by the multidisciplinary team.'

The boy was taken to the Juvenile and Family Court for legal proceedings.