A St Neots man stole a bike to pay off his drug debts, Huntingdon magistrates heard.

Mario Brunning, 19, of Harland Road, took the £950 mountain bike from a garden in St Neots on October 1 and then sold it later for £50.

Jackie Carradice, prosecuting, said Brunning received £20 for the sale with the other £30 paying off his cannabis debts.

The victim found his bike for sale on Facebook and the seller said he had bought it off Brunning, Huntingdon Magistrates’ Court heard on Thursday (January 23).

Mrs Carradice said: “In interview Mr Brunning said if he had not given back the money, he was told that the dealer would smash windows of his father’s house.”

Lorraine Adams, mitigating, told magistrates that the theft had caught up with Brunning after he was sent to a Young Offender’s Institute in October for breaching a community order, which served as a sharp shock.

Brunning admitted the theft and was given a 12-month community order with 12 month’s supervision. He was also ordered to undertake 60 hours of unpaid work and pay £450 compensation.