A pensioner has been given a six-month conditional discharge for stealing groceries from a Hamilton supermarket.

Appearing in Magistrates’ Court this morning, Alexander Virgil admitted taking the items worth $16.34 on June 15.

The court heard that he was confronted by the manager of the Church Street MarketPlace after an employee saw him put a carton of milk in his backpack.

He also had a Royal Gazette newspaper, coconut water and two strawberry flavoured drinks. Virgil was arrested and taken to Hamilton Police Station, where he admitted the offence.

In court today, he apologised, telling magistrate Khamisi Tokunbo that it was a mistake on his part.

He said he had gone to check his pension and “there wasn’t much in it”, so he put the items in his bag.

Asked by Mr Tokunbo how the subsequent arrest had affected him, he said: “I can’t get over it as yet.”

“This has been hanging over your head,” Mr Tokunbo said, adding that “at your age, you don’t need to have a conviction for something so silly and simple as this”.

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