A DRUG addict who targeted Norfolk amusement arcades to pay off debts to his dealers was placed on a 12-month drug rehabilitation programme yesterday. Brendan Burt, 26, pleaded guilty to stealing £1,850 from machines at the Searles Leisure resort in Hunstanton on April 3 and May 19 and taking a cashbox from an arcade in Hemsby on August 1.
A DRUG addict who targeted Norfolk amusement arcades to pay off debts to his dealers was placed on a 12-month drug rehabilitation programme yesterday.
Brendan Burt, 26, pleaded guilty to stealing £1,850 from machines at the Searles Leisure resort in Hunstanton on April 3 and May 19 and taking a cashbox from an arcade in Hemsby on August 1.
Burt, of North Quay, Yarmouth, also admitted trying to steal from a machine at the Eastern Beach Caravan Park in Caister on August 6.
Yarmouth Magistrates' Court heard Burt had had a drug habit for about nine years and needed the money to pay off dealers.
Conrad Shaw, prosecuting, said Burt told police he “was usually high on drugs and drink at the time he committed offences”.
Burt also admitted stealing perfume from the Roys of Wroxham in Hoveton on February 1 and possessing an offensive weapon, a screwdriver, and class C drugs in Yarmouth on August 27.
After hearing that previous prison sentences had not helped Burt over-come his drug addiction, magistrates decided to place him on a 12-month drug rehabilitation programme and an 18-month community order.
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