THE availability of drugs behind bars means offenders could be released with worse habits than when they went in, magistrates in Swindon heard yesterday.

The bench was given an alarming glimpse into the situation in our prisons as they decided how to sentence a heroin addict responsible for a string of shop thefts.

Maciej Tomczyk, 29, of Turner Street, appeared by video link from Gablecross Police Station on Tuesday morning.

He pleaded guilty to stealing electrical goods worth £125.99 from Tesco on Ocotal Way the previous evening.

The court heard that Tomczyk was seen to place three bluetooth speakers inside his jacket before leaving without paying.

Police officers arrived and he was arrested. In a subsequent interview he said he was stealing to fund his heroin addiction.

Keith Ballinger, prosecuting, told magistrates that this was not Tomczyk’s first brush with the law in recent months.

Last Monday he was handed a 12 month community order for another shoplifting offence. The order included a requirement that he complete unpaid work and a drug rehab course.

In the week between Tomczyk being given that order and then being caught stealing again, he failed to attend two mandatory appointments with the probation service.

Gordon Hotson, defending, said: “Mr Tomczyk is from Poland originally, he’s been in the UK for 15 months.

“Unfortunately since he came to this country he has started using drugs, that has resulted in him coming before the court on a number of occasions since his first appearance in November.”

Anticipating that the magistrates may be considering sending his client to prison, Mr Hotson sought to caution them against such an idea.

“Given that he has reoffended so soon after a substantial community order was imposed, you may be considering revoking that order and sending him straight to prison,” he said.

“Ultimately I don’t think that is going to help anybody, certainly not Mr Tomczyk.

“We all know that unfortunately drugs are available in prison and it may well be he would come out at the half way point of his sentence with a drug habit that was no better than before, if not potentially worse.”

Instead, Mr Hotson urged the magistrates to suspend any custodial sentence they may be considering to allow the drug rehabilitation requirement previously imposed to get underway and be given a chance to work.

Tomczyk was given an eight week prison sentence, suspended for 12 months, told to complete 100 hours unpaid work and attend a rehab programme.