A 59-year-old man who admitted to stealing maintenance tools worth $600 was sent to jail for six months.

Sinclair Fox, of the Salvation Army hostel, on Marsh Folly Road, in Pembroke, pleaded guilty at Magistrates' Court to trespassing on the site of former Blue Ribbon Cleaners, on Reid Street, in Hamilton, and taking a power drill and three paint brushes.

The court heard that a maintenance worker had left his tools at the site and locked the area before going home for the day.

When he arrived at work the next morning he immediately noticed a window was open and several items were missing from the area, including drinks from the fridge.

Later that day, when the worker was on Court and Dundonald Streets he noticed Fox sitting next to a black tool box containing the stolen items. Fox apologised to the worker and said: "I didn't know they were yours. I wouldn't have taken them if I knew they were yours."

Fox is a self-confessed drug addict and admitted to Police that he sold the paint brushes to a third party for $12 in order to support his drug habit.

The court heard that Fox had a long list of previous convictions dating back to 1969 and Magistrate Khamisi Tokunbo asked: "Are you not tired of going to jail?" before sentencing him to six months' imprisonment.