A BURGLAR who stole kitchen units from the home of a family friend told police: "I thought they would look better in our house."

The cupboards had been installed in the property by council workers while the tenant recovered at his brother's home following a two-month hospital stay.

Anthony Wright-King's mother had been given a key to the house to check on it from time to time over a fortnight.

But when the tenant returned, he found the units had been stripped from his kitchen, and police were quickly led to Wright-King's nearby home in Hemlington, Middlesbrough.

Gillian Kane, prosecuting, told Teesside Crown Court yesterday that he initially asked officers: "How did you know I had them?"

The 33-year-old then told police the front door had been open and that he went in to have a look.

In interview, he said: "I thought the units looked nice, and that they would look better in our kitchen."

Wright-King, of Dalcross Court, admitted burglary and was sentenced to an 18-month supervision and community rehabilitation order, and a 100-hour community punishment order in November 2003.

He appeared in court yesterday to be sentenced for breaching the supervision by failing to turn up at two sessions. His barrister, Alasdair Campbell, told the court that former drug addict Wright-King had worked well on the community punishment and completed it, but feared he would find group work at the sessions embarrassing and hard to take part in.

Judge Peter Armstrong revoked the original sentence and imposed a 12-month community rehabilitation order with one-to-one sessions.

He told Wright-King: "A time will come when you do not comply with community orders, and you will leave the court with no alternative but to send you to custody.

"It seems to me that there is still some work to be done. You still need some help, and it is to the benefit of the community that you receive some help from the probation service and also some punishment for failing to carry out this order."