Two men have been jailed after stealing meat and alcohol from local shops.

Alistair John Cowin, whose address was given as the Isle of Man prison, admitted three counts of theft as well as one of provoking behaviour.

He was jailed for 24 weeks while Anthony James Scaddan, of no fixed abode, was jailed for eight weeks after he pleaded guilty to four thefts.

We previously reported that 36-year-old Cowin was jailed and Scaddan, who is 25, was put on probation after a previous incident on Peel promenade on the day of the Parish Walk.

Prosecutor James Robinson told the court of the latest charges, which took place on the same day. Before their arrest in Peel on June 22, Cowin and Scaddan went on a theft spree in Ramsey, stealing alcohol and meat from the Co-op, Little Shoprite, and Shoprite.

At 1.10pm the pair were seen on CCTV footage in Little Shoprite taking two bottles of gin and one bottle of vodka.

Half an hour later they were seen in Shoprite on Bowring Road taking two bottles of whisky. Then at 2.50pm, the two men were seen in the Co-op taking two meat products, gin and spirits.

When quizzed by police Cowin admitted the thefts, saying he was out of work and his benefits didn’t cover his living expenses. Scaddan gave a ’no comment’ interview.

Spree

Scaddan admitted a fourth theft, relating to £5 worth of clothes stolen from Dealz on July 24, the day he was sentenced to probation for the offences on Peel promenade.

Cowin committed another offence on August 3 after he had problems putting credit on his electricity meter.

He knocked on a neighbour’s door and was said to have been aggressive, then approached another person on the gas works steps asking to use their phone. Another person said Cowin had threatened to harm himself in front of everyone.

Advocate Paul Rodgers, representing Cowin, said: ’Mr Cowin accepts he has an issue with drinking.

’He apologises to all the people he spoke to and accepts the language he used could have caused some distress.’

Michael Mudge, who appeared for Scaddan, said that the thefts could have been dealt with at the same time as the offences committed on Peel promenade. ’Almost all of Mr Scaddan’s offending is related to alcohol,’ he said.

Mr Mudge referred to a probation report which had described Scaddan as ’placid’ when he was not drinking.

High Bailiff Jayne Hughes sentenced Cowin to four weeks for the thefts and eight weeks for the provoking behaviour, plus another 12 weeks in relation to a sentence he had been released on licence from, all to run consecutively.

Scaddan was sentenced to four weeks for the three thefts on June 22 and four weeks for the theft on July 24.