A HOMELESS man has been banned from owning wire cutters and a balaclava after he was accused of stealing two bikes in two days.

A balaclava-clad man stole a £475 bike from Polaris House in North Star on June 16, and a £300 bike from Brunel Cycle Park a day later.

Prosecutors claim it was Brian Gary Bingham, who has been charged with two counts of burglary.

He has also been charged with one count of going equipped for theft after he was allegedly found with wire cutters on June 24.

Flanked by one security guard in the dock, the 28-year-old, of no fixed abode, pleaded not guilty to all three charges at Swindon Magistrates’ Court on Monday (June 27).

He was granted bail ahead of his trial in December.

But District Judge Joanna Dickens said that a condition of the bail must be that he is not found in possession of a balaclava or wire cutters.

“If you are found in possession of any of those you could be kept in prison until the case is finished,” she told the defendant.

Bingham will face a trial at the same court on December 1.