A LUXURY handbag thief who found himself in Garda clutches pleaded guilty in a Limerick court to stealing more than €1,000 worth of designer handbags from the Brown Thomas store in Limerick City Centre.
Judge Carol Anne Coolican heard the guilty plea from James Kelly (35), of Maple Court, Kennedy Park, Limerick City.
Mr Kelly admitted taking four handbags, worth €900, from the department store on December 10 last year and €350 worth of handbags on another date (December 6). Mr Kelly was identified on CCTV.
None of the property was recovered, the Limerick District Court was told.
Mr Kelly also pleaded guilty to a charge under the Public Order Act for being intoxicated on January 13 at close to midnight, when Gardaà saw him “swaying through traffic with his eyes closed. He was so intoxicated that he fell into the patrol car,” the prosecution told the court.
Mr Kelly’s solicitor said he is a “vulnerable person who was exposed to drugs at a very early age and this led to his addiction problems”.
Judge Coolican was told Mr Kelly has 87 previous convictions, for offences including robbery, theft, burglary, and handling stolen goods.
The judge also heard that he received a six-year sentence for robbery with one year suspended for three years, which would be triggered by his latest offences.
The judge imposed sentences of one month and two months for the handbag thefts and remanded Kelly to appear before Limerick Circuit Court on February 25 for consideration of the triggering the suspended sentence.