A HEROIN addict who went on a crime spree shortly after magistrates put him on a community order has been jailed for 22 months.

Mark Bradley burgled a hotel room, stole his stepbrother's satellite navigation system and broke into cars, stealing a chequebook which he then used.

But the 31-year-old has been jailed after a judge told him: "The public needs some protection from people like you."

Claire Marlow, prosecuting, told Swindon Crown Court that a pair of spray-painters working in the town were staying at the Royston Hotel in Victoria Road.

On Thursday, August 23 they went to work first thing in the morning, locking the door and leaving the key to their room on the rack at reception.

When they returned that evening they found both of their laptops, worth £1,000 and £450, had been taken.

When the CCTV was checked it was found that Bradley, who was staying at the hotel, had taken the key and gone to the room to take the items.

Miss Marlow said two days later the editor of local newsletter, the Stratton Outlook, parked his car outside a pub in Oxford Road and returned to find it broken into.

Among the items stolen was a chequebook which Bradley used to pay for a room at the Premier Travel Inn at Kembrey Park.

While he was there he stole a mobile phone which was behind the reception desk.

That spate of offending came a couple of months after Bradley stole his stepbrother's £400 sat nav after asking to borrow it.

The victim insisted he sign a letter saying it would be returned the following day and had it witnessed by Bradley's father, but it was never seen again.

Bradley, of Queens Avenue, Highworth, admitted two counts of burglary, two of theft and two deceptions and asked for nine further matters to be taken into consideration.

The court heard the father of two had a long history of crime and was put on a community order by magistrates on June 14.

James Tucker, defending, said that because of his client's dependency on drugs, and in particular heroin, he offended to fund that habit.

In the past he said Bradley had managed to get off drugs but at the start of the year the death of his mother had set him back.

He said his client needed to get off drugs and was aware that a spell in prison would help him.

Jailing him, Judge Douglas Field said: "You indulged in a spate of dishonesty and the public needs some protection from people like you who thieve to fund their heroin habit."