A PROLIFIC thief has been given a final chance to prove he can stay out of trouble by magistrates.
Peter Romaniw, 32, of the Salvation Army Hostel in Eleanor Street, Grimsby, had his sentence deferred by six months by the bench at Grimsby Magistrates Court after pleading guilty to three charges of theft.
The magistrates warned however that there would be "no excuses" should Romaniw step out of line in the forthcoming months.
The court heard Romaniw stole £60 worth of CDs from the Sainsbury's Local store in Welholme Road on November 26.
He also asked for the theft of £15 worth of meat from the same store on November 3 and the theft of £8 worth of washing liquid from The Co-operative Food in Convamore Road on November 25 to be taken into consideration.
Romaniw was caught on CCTV taking six CDs from Sainsbury's and, following his arrest, told police he fully admitted what he had done.
However, none of the items stolen by Romaniw were recovered by police.
Defending, Lauren Fisher said her client was at a low ebb after coming out of prison with no money or accommodation to his name.
"Mr Romaniw admitted the offences in full and admitted his guilt at the earliest opportunity," she said.
"These are low-level and unsophisticated offences, he put the items underneath his jumper or in bags.
"He received 16 weeks in prison in August for breaching a suspended sentence and for a further offence of theft, and the sentence saw him released in October.
"He was released and given no assistance, money or anywhere to live, and he was unable to get Jobseekers' Allowance because he had no fixed abode and no mobile phone.
"He was sofa surfing but eventually his friends lost interest in him because he had no money to offer them for food or board.
"He was himself sleeping on the streets for three weeks before finding his current accommodation and can now claim Jobseekers' Allowance and will be eligible for housing benefit."
Mr Fisher said Romaniw had drug issues which were being addressed through a drug intervention programme and had been stealing items purely to try to pay for his food and board.
"There is no reason for him to commit further offences," she said.
Magistrates deferred Romaniw's sentence for six months and will note his progress in his drug treatment.
"We are going to give you a chance to comply with the drug intervention programme," they told him.
"But there will be no excuses, we are going to defer the sentence to see how you go so this is your chance and you have got to prove yourself."
