A CARLISLE man who fell asleep at a neighbour’s home had his own house keys snatched from his pocket and then a bank card pinched from his address.

Martin Forster, 32, found himself back in court for his role in the fraudulent use of the car after the theft occurred.

A district judge was given details of the man’s misfortune.

“He fell asleep at a neighbour’s house while intoxicated,” said prosecutor Jackie Partington. “His house keys were taken from his pocket. Other items, including a Halifax bank card, were taken from his home. The card was then used in a number of local shops to buy goods.”

In a prepared statement, Forster accepted he used the bank card with an accomplice on 22nd June.

Forster fraudulently obtained £47.84 worth of tobacco from a Sainsbury’s store. “There were then two declined transactions at a Spar for tobacco and scratch cards,” said Ms Partington. The value of this intended dishonesty was £86.35.

In court Forster, of Graham Street, Carlisle, pleaded guilty to two counts of fraud by false representation, and also to receiving stolen goods — the cash card.

He also admitted three shop thefts, which all occurred at a Bargain Booze store in Carlisle.

Two were committed on 23rd June within three hours of each other. A third took place two days later.

“Staff tried to prevent him going in,” said Ms Partington. “They asked him to leave. He entered anyway. He walked around and picked up four bottles of Soursz (liqueur) before leaving.”

The total value of Forster’s three thefts on the two days was £106.64.

At Carlisle Magistrates’ Court, Forster was ordered to pay compensation to the business in full. He had since been recalled to custody on licence to serve the balance of a previously imposed jail term.

Adele Graham, mitigating, said there had earlier been a gap in Forster’s offending of around 10 years.

He suffered from complex mental health problems which included early development and personality difficulties. “These have triggered a dependence on alcohol which did lead to his recent shoplifting incidents,” said Ms Graham.

“Mr Forster has been accepting support for problems: counselling and psychological interventions to help him deal with recent trauma.”

He had tried to follow this through while in custody.

District judge John Temperley imposed a total prison sentence of 12 weeks for the latest offending.

He acknowledged there would be no extension to Forster’s stay in prison, which was due to run until March, 2025. “It is right that the (June) offences are marked with a custodial sentence, which is what I have done,” said the judge.