Two friends who ran out of money while on a double date extended their drinking session by stealing luxury alcohol from a city centre store.

Cash-strapped Neil Oak and Earl Kearney travelled from London to Canterbury to meet two women for drinks.

But after running out of funds they raided two shops in quick succession, swiping hundreds of pounds worth of alcohol and clothes.

The pair stole six bottles of champagne and seven bottles of bourbon from M&S before taking clothes from JD Sports in Whitefriars.

Police would later discover Oak, 30, and Kearney, 35, at a Premier Inn in New Dover Road, having drunk some of the booze.

And following their arrest Oak spat at an officer and damaged a cell door, causing £314 worth of damage.

Both men admitted their actions at Margate Magistrates’ Court on August 7, where details of their antics surfaced.

Prosecutor Julie Farbrace told how the pair stole £470 worth of champagne and bourbon, with staff able to retrieve three bottles from a rucksack as they fled the store.

She continued: “Then they went to JD Sports about half an hour later and took clothes and a coat. CCTV showed them walking out with their bags swinging over the security barrier.

“Police later located them at the Premier Inn with the items, including security tags, and some of the bottles of champagne and bourbon were opened.

“When Oak was put in a police van he spat at an officer and then when in a cell, he scratched the cell door leaving blue paint on the floor.

“The JD Sports items were returned to the store but were not resold, and the police officer said it was a disgusting and vile assault.”

The drama unfolded on the afternoon of January 11, with Oak making off with £170 worth of clothes from the store and Kearney taking a £125 coat.

After fleeing to the Premier Inn they began drinking the stolen champagne and bourbon.

However, later in the afternoon, police located the pair and they were arrested, the prosecutor said.

Oak, of Watling Gardens, Shoot Up Hill, London, was later charged with two counts of shoplifting, assault on an emergency worker and criminal damage.

Kearney, of Dawpool Road, London, was charged with two counts of shoplifting.

Both defendants pleaded guilty to all charges when they appeared in the dock.

Ms Farbrace told magistrates Oak and Kearney both had previous convictions.

Oak was on licence from prison when he committed the latest offences, having been handed a 16-month sentence in September 2022 for ABH.

The court heard Kearney, who has a drinking problem, travelled from London with Oak to meet a girl and her friend.

After they began drinking both men became intoxicated, ran out of alcohol, then went out to steal more.

Subsequently, the duo conceded their behaviour was “stupid and foolish”, with Oak also admitting to having an alcohol problem, the court was told.

He would usually drink at least six to eight cans of beer a day, and also suffered from ADHD and mental health issues.

The bench fined Kearney £120 for the M&S theft and ordered he pay £128 compensation to the store however, he did not have to pay compensate JD Sports because the stolen items were returned.

Kearney was also ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £48 and £85 costs but received no separate penalty for the JD Sports theft.

Magistrates placed Oak on a 12-month community order which will see him complete an alcohol treatment requirement programme for six months and attend 15 rehabilitation sessions with probation.

Oak was also ordered to pay M&S £252 in compensation for the booze, but like Kearney received no separate penalty for the JD Sports theft and did not have to pay compensation back to the store because the items he stole were returned.

He was also ordered to pay the police officer £50 compensation for spitting at him and £314 to Kent Police for the damage to the cell door.

Oak was also ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £114 and £85 costs.