A 35-year-old man will spend one month in prison for breaching Covid-19 regulations.

Wayne Mellor of Hazel Close, Douglas, pleaded guilty to breaching the Emergency Powers Act regulations after he was found by police drinking beer at a friend’s house.

Police were called to Alder Road at 2.40pm on April 18 following reports of people arriving at a property who didn’t live there.

Prosecutor Rebecca Cubbon told the court that police found Mellor sat in his friend’s lounge.

He told officers he had gone to take his friend’s Mi card at the post office to collect his benefits, but the post office counter at the shop had closed.

Instead Mellor bought two cans of beer and some crisps and returned to his friend’s house where he remained for about two hours until the police arrived.

He had been previously warned about being outside of his home by officers on April 16.

Defence Advocate Dave Clegg said his client apologised for putting himself in the situation but that he saw the trip to get his friend’s benefits payment as an essential journey.

Mr Clegg said that Mellor accepted he had breached the regulations when he decided to stay for a drink and he has apologised to the officers who dealt with him.

High Bailiff Jayne Hughes again repeated that people who appear before her for such offences were likely to go to prison. She said: ’I don’t know how many times people need to be told.’

Mrs Hughes said that Mellor ’clearly’ was aware of the regulations, having been warned only two days prior to this incident and that if he had Covid-19, he could have been spreading the virus between his friend and the shop.

Mellor was sentenced to 30 days in custody.