A BINGE-DRINKING burglar who trashed a shop before stealing cigarettes is today behind bars.

Darlington magistrates heard 22-year-old Jamie Bethell and three other accomplices broke into S & S Supermarket, in Darlington, after it had shut for the day on February 27.

Prosecutor John Garside said CCTV from the shop showed the group “making a nuisance of themselves” and fooling around with each other before Bethell, of Jedburgh Drive, Darlington, helped himself to cigarettes from the display counter.

During the burglary, the group smashed a window and broke the shop's shutters, as well as stealing £488 worth of goods, leaving the owners more than £660 down.

Probation officer, Mo Sibert, who prepared a report on Bethell, said the offence put the father-to-be in breach of a community order imposed in January for another burglary.

She told the court his offending history is littered with breaches and asked magistrates to consider a custodial sentence.

“He is capable of unpaid work, but he won’t do it,” she said. “There is no point in wasting our resources on supervision if he won’t come.”

In mitigation, Stephen Andrews said Bethell has a problem with alcohol, often “drinking to excess and then losing all sense of what is right and what is wrong.”

He also told the court Bethell’s current girlfriend is pregnant and would like him to be around to look after their child.

Bethell pleaded guilty to burglary and magistrates sentenced him to 26 weeks in prison. He was also sentenced to a further 18 weeks for breaching his community order and another week for his outstanding court fines of £330, both to run consecutively.

Chairman of the bench, Alistair White, said: “It is not very often that probation say they have difficulties working with someone.

“We can see no alternative but to send you to custody.”