A MAN who broke into his former partner's house before smashing her bed and falling asleep has been jailed.

Mark Adams breached a non-molestation order twice within a matter of weeks and was found in possession of a knuckleduster following the second incident.

Teesside Crown Court heard how the 39-year-old had a baseball bat with him when he was discovered in his victim's Guisborough home in March this year.

Jon Harley, prosecuting, said the defendant returned to the woman's home on April 9 and became angry when he was asked to leave.

He said Adams attempted to hide the knuckleduster when he was arrested by police the following day.

Adams, of Park View Terrace, Guisborough, pleaded guilty to two breaches of the order, possession of an offensive weapon and criminal damage at an earlier hearing.

Nigel Soppitt, mitigating, said his client had been invited to the victim's house by the woman but accepted that he should have ignored her due to the court order.

Sentencing Adams to 20 weeks in prison, Judge Jonathan Carroll said: "It's a sad fact of life that relationships breakdown and it can be difficult and emotional time for everybody but there has to come a time when you have to accept the relationship has ran its course and you need to let it go."