Prolific thief who stole alcohol to pay off £2,000 drug debt avoids jail

A prolific thief with more than 50 previous convictions has avoided jail despite behaving in a way that is “a detriment to the community”.Scott Manning, 36, was only recently released from prison after his last spate of offences – and faced another term behind bars when he appeared at Lynn Magistrates’ Court on Thursday.Manning, of Queen Mary Road in Gaywood, had pleaded guilty to two counts of theft from a shop at a previous hearing, with a pre-sentence report completed before his return to the dock.

On July 22, he stole items including alcohol and meat valued at £387.18 from Waitrose in Swaffham. This offence pre-dated his jail term.Then, on September 17, he stole £421 worth of alcohol from Tesco in Lynn. The goods were recovered, but the court heard Manning had stolen them in a bid to pay off his debt to a drug dealer.These incidents added to his 50 previous convictions for more than 100 offences. Probation officer Lewis Spicer told magistrates that Manning’s most recent report “doesn’t make for very pleasant reading”.He had failed to pay his rent at the time the report was prepared, while he had not organised an appointment with his GP despite being required to do so. After his recent theft, the authorities did consider recalling him to prison immediately – but due to the close proximity of his next court appearance, they did not.Manning also received a warning from the Purfleet Trust “about his behaviour”, and was told if he receives another he will be evicted.“He has been afforded access to all the support he needs,” Mr Spicer said, citing a report from one of his probation colleagues. “He repeatedly makes choices to continue behaving like this, to the cost and detriment of the community.”However, in mitigation, solicitor Alison Muir argued that handing Manning a suspended sentence rather than another jail term would be “preferable”.She said that at the time of his recent offence, Manning owed a drug dealer £2,000 – with that number now at £200.“The person he owed money actually drove to the shop with him to make him steal the items,” Ms Muir said. “Enquiries were made, but they could not arrest him as there were no items in the car.“It is his past coming back to haunt him. He owes a lot of money – that is all part and parcel of his own fault, of course.”Ms Muir did say that Manning has now engaged with the Change, Grow, Live charity in Lynn, as well as his GP and the Cocaine Anonymous organisation.Manning himself told the court that he has not taken drugs since before his last jail term. “Obviously, this is not going to be an easy task – the list of previous offences will show that,” Ms Muir added.“He has clearly had a very troubled lifestyle because of his previous behaviour.“I know it is a lot to ask given his previous convictions, but he is a young man who needs a lot of help.”Magistrates handed Manning a six-week jail sentence, suspended for 12 months. “You are trying to help yourself at last, and thus we will give you a chance,” they said.He will also pay a £154 victim surcharge, but no court costs because he already owes more than £6,000.