A PROLIFIC offender has appeared in court charged with 17 offences from one night of criminality.

Jamie Banfield was caught red-handed after he was spotted trying door handles on parked cars in the Stainton area of Middlesbrough.

The 31-year-old and his accomplice had broken into a shed and stolen two bikes, before stealing clothes and cash from two unlocked cars, as he prowled the streets in the early hours of May 8.

Teesside Crown Court heard how Banfield told officers 'Well done, you've got me' when they found him hiding in a nearby field.

Shaun Dryden, prosecuting, said the defendant had pleaded guilty to 12 charges of motor vehicle interference, two of thefts from a motor vehicle, a shed burglary, an attempted burglary and going equipped after police found a screwdriver hidden in his trousers.

Mr Dryden said the two stolen bikes were recovered after officers spotted them left in a nearby street when they responded to residents' calls about the two men prowling the streets.

Tom Bennett, in mitigation, said his client had a 'chequered past' but he has largely kept out of trouble since he was jailed in 2015 apart from a charge of possession of an offensive weapon last year.

He said: "He has taken the misguided step of taking recreational drugs with a friend and has then conducted these set of offences that he is at a loss to explain."

Judge Recorder Marco Giuliani adjourned the case until Friday before passing sentence.