A crime spree that ran up a £3,500 bill in damage and stolen property landed a Herne Bay man in court.

But Mark Drury walked away from Canterbury Crown Court with a suspended sentence as the root of his persistent offending was a heroin addiction.

Drury, 25, of Canterbury Road, appeared for sentence having admitted attempted theft and burglary and was given a 12-month sentece suspended for two years with supervision and specified activities.

He will also be under a four month curfew.

Prosecutor James Bilsland said last June a staff member saw Drury in the kitchen at the Prince of Wales pub in Herne Bay.

He ran off, but it was obvious things had been moved around, and it was found that bottles of drink and cigarettes had been stolen. Police later recovered some cigarettes from Drury’s address nearby and bottles of drink were found in a wheelie bin outside the pub.

In October, Drury tried to break into a BT van but failed to steal anything and caused about £500 damage.

He asked for 37 further offences to be considered and Mr Bilsland said the cost of Drury’s offences was over £3,500. He had 19 previous convictions for offences including burglary and robbery.

Philip Rowley, for Drury, said he had a 'wretched history’ of offending and the court would be entitled to impose immediate custody. He said Drury was now addressing his heroin habit and was on a methadone script.

He had walked into the police station saying he wanted to clear the slate and was now in settled accommodation with a partner who had a stabilising effect on his life.

Sentencing Drury, Recorder Simon Russell-Flint, QC, said: “Usually looking at your offending behaviour and your past record, you would expect about four years immediate imprisonment.

“I give you credit for your admissions and guilty pleas and what has led to matters being considered, particularly your return to the police station and asking to clear the slate. It is either a calculated device on your part to try and do the best you possibly can now or it is a genuine attempt to do the best you possibly can to start a new life.

"Take the methadone as opposed to illegally obtained drugs and slowly reduce the methadone so that you can lead a normal life in the future.”