Serial thief who stole car parts is spared jail

A SERIAL thief who stole car parts and traffic lights batteries has been sentenced... six years after he was first arrested.

Jamie Hamilton pleaded guilty to ten charges when he appeared at Kilmarnock Sheriff Court, including nicking old batteries from the North Ayrshire Council household waste recycling centre in Kilbirnie.

But the 27-year-old was spared a prison sentence after a sheriff noted that he had gone five years without committing any further offences.

Hamilton admitted included five charges of stealing a car and car parts, including registration plates and alloy wheels, on January 22, 2018.

He also pleaded guilty to stealing a quantity of batteries from the recycling site in Kilbirnie between November 9, 2017 and April 30, 2018.

Further charges included opening lockfast traffic light towers and stealing batteries from Alexander Avenue in Largs and Arranview Gardens in Seamill, nicking diesel from a fuel bowser at Flatt Farm in Largs, and the theft of red diesel from Routenburn Golf Club.

Hamilton’s lawyer told the court that his client accepted responsibility for his actions, and had “demonstrated appropriate remorse”.

The solicitor told Sheriff Colin Bissett: “He understands that the custody threshold has undoubtedly been passed, but I invite you to take alternatives to custody.

“I would ask that you take into account the time since the offences, and the position he was in. He was destitute and living in a van due to substance misuse.

“With the assistance of his partner, he has turned his life around, and he no longer takes drugs.

“This is a man who has gone through significant adverse childhood experiences.

“There is no suggestion this man has continued to engage in criminality.”

Sentencing, Sheriff Bissett said: “These offences are serious and well justify the imposition of custody.

“However, these offences all took place over five years ago, and you have not committed any more.

“There were particular pressures on you during that time, and I can see that you have focused your life on more productive avenues.”

Hamilton, of Islay Gardens in Largs, was ordered to carry out 250 hours of unpaid work, to be completed within 12 months.