A man who took £600 from a gambling machine in Jaks bar which paid out in error has been sentenced to community service.

Ryan Edward Greason, of Gretch Noa, Laxey, admitted an offence of theft and was ordered by magistrates to do 80 hours of unpaid work.

The 32-year-old baker must also repay the £600 to Jaks in compensation.

Prosecuting advocate Rebecca Cubbon told the court how Greason was in Jaks on May 5 at 3.20pm.

Another person in the pub had won £600 on the machine and it was said to have been reset after the win.

However, there was an error with the machine and when Greason put a £20 note into it, it showed £620 credit.

Greason pressed the collect button and the machine displayed a message saying ’see the manager’. Greason told bar staff and he was given the £620. He left the pub and it wasn’t until a later date, when police put out a media release on Tweetbeat with CCTV footage asking for the identity of the man, that Greason came forward.

When interviewed by police he claimed he had been playing the machine and won on two or three spins which banks the money in the machine until you collect it.

However, he was shown CCTV footage and admitted that he didn’t play the machine but had put £20 and it had then displayed £620 credit. Defence advocate Paul Rodgers said that this was a complex area of the law and that, although Greason thought he was acting honestly, the test is what an ordinary member of the public would think.

Mr Rodgers said: ’His account is he put £20 in. Only then credit of £600 flashed up and he pressed collect. He went to see the manager. The person who gave him the money was aware of the previous winner and didn’t question it.’

A probation report said that Greason said he found it confusing that he had come to court and that he was in shock.

He told probation he had been getting panic attacks as a result of worrying about the case.

Greason said he had asked the police if he could pay the money back in instalments but they had refused.

Mr Rodgers said that if the £600 credit had flashed up after Greason had gambled it would not have been an issue.

The advocate said it was akin to a cash machine that starts paying out money and a queue of people take it or people finding money in their bank account which they know does not belong to them and spending it.

Magistrates chair Gill Eaton told Greason: ’We are of the opinion you were an experienced user of these machines so you were well placed to know if you hadn’t pressed the button you didn’t win.’

Greason was also ordered to pay £125 prosecution costs which he will pay along with the compensation to Jaks at a rate of £50 per month.