A PENRITH man with a history of shoplifting has admitted repeatedly flouting a court's criminal behaviour order - by going to his local Sainsbury's store.

Shane Wright, 45, was given the order after earlier offending.

At Carlisle's Rickergate Magistrates' Court, the defendant, of Champion Way, Penrith, admitted five breaches of the order.

The prosecution accepted his two not guilty pleas to two like allegations.

From the dock of the court, the defendant told magistrates that his criminal behaviour order had simply slipped his mind. "I just forgot all about it," he told the court.

He said that he had gone to the shop initially to buy a top-up voucher for his mobile phone.

Wright made that first illegal visit on Thursday, October 7 - the day he was released from a previous jail term. Wright made his second visit to collect this receipt for the voucher, he said.

After the first visit, he said, a member of staff had told him that he would be let off.

But magistrates pointed out that the defendant continued to return to the store, openly defying his criminal behaviour order - including three times on the Friday morning, even turning up before the store opened in the hope of being allowed in.

Asked if he had alternative stores he could visit, Wright said he could go to a local Spar store, or a Bargain Booze.

After hearing the details, magistrates said they felt the needed more background information about Wright before imposing sentence.

In the meantime, the defendant will be remanded in custody, they said.

They wanted in particular to hear from a community mental health team. Magistrates said they will sentence Wright in three weeks. 

His previous jail term was imposed for a spate of offending, which included eight thefts, including at the Morrisons store in Brunswick Road in Penrith when he stole chocolate brownies, Coke, Pepsi and Pringles during his visits; and at the town's Sainsbury's.

After his conviction, magistrates banned him from both stores.