A homeless man will be sentenced next month for the theft of more than $365 worth of food from a supermarket and a break-in at a restaurant.

Kim Knight, 37, pleaded guilty in Magistrates’ Court yesterday to two counts of burglary and one count of a breach of the 12.30am to 5am curfew.

The court heard that police were called to The Shopping Centre on Victoria Street in Hamilton after a security alarm went off in the early hours of last Saturday morning.

Officers found Knight in the store’s basement with a small flashlight.

He was putting groceries into a large trash bag.

The court heard Knight raised his hands when he saw the police.

He told them: I’m not going to fight you guys”.

Police found a variety of items, which included rice and canned food, in the bag.

Officers also found a small bag of tools, which Knight admitted he used to break into the store.

The court also heard that police were called to Four Star Pizza on Angle Street, Pembroke, in the early hours of June 13, 2019 after its alarm was triggered.

The glass front door of the restaurant was broken and police found Knight next to the restaurant.

The officers said he was “breathing heavily, shaking nervously and fidgeting with his hands”.

A restaurant staff member, who lived nearby, told officers that he saw Knight walking about in front of the restaurant after the alarm had been tripped.

Officers searched Knight and found two pairs of gloves, a flashlight and a screwdriver.

He was arrested on suspicion of burglary but later released on bail.

Knight was interviewed on Saturday after he was arrested for the break-in at The Shopping Centre and also admitted the break-in at Four Star Pizza and theft of a bag of chips and some cookies.

He said that he took the food because he was hungry and had not eaten for several days.

Knight added he was homeless at the time of the Four Star break-in.

The defendant, of no fixed abode, said he was now living with his mother.

He added: “I know what I did was wrong, but at the time I was so embarrassed that breaking into places was more of a way for me to hide being homeless.

“It was a bad decision fuelled by me trying to hide my situation.”

Senior magistrate Juan Wolffe released Knight on $2,000 bail and ordered him to stick to a 9pm to 6am curfew.

He also ordered a social inquiry report and drug assessment and adjourned the case until November 22.

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