A man who stole thousands of pounds worth of cigarettes and alcohol from a shop owned by his landlords has been jailed for 16 months.

Christopher Force was renting a flat from the owners of Low Hill Wines, in Fourth Avenue, in March, when he carried out the raid with two other men.

Wolverhampton Crown Court heard the trio smashed their way into the store on March 6 and ransacked the shop, stealing £3,482 worth of cigarettes and alcohol and causing £680 in damage.

Force was identified from CCTV by a local police officer and by store owner Bimla Banga who has run the business for 22 years.

She had rented the flat above the shop to Force who was living there at the time of the crime.

Howard Searle, prosecuting, said almost all of the cigarettes and 50 bottles of spirits had been taken in an “untidy search” of the shop.

The thieves made their way into shop by smashing a rear window and forcing a roller shutter open.

He said: “Mrs Banga said she was shocked to find the shop had been burgled and she was annoyed that people could smash their way into the shop and take things she had to work hard for.”

Force, aged 30, of Simpson Grove, Low Hill, pleaded guilty on the day of his trial at Wolverhampton Magistrates Court in November and was committed to the crown court for sentencing because of the seriousness of the crime.

Defending Jonathan Challinor said his client could spend as much as £100 a day on cocaine and had a heavy drinking problem.

He said: “He was at the worst ebb of his life” and targeted the shop “to finance two extremely powerful addictions”.

Sentencing Force to 16 months Judge Michael Challinor told him: “You targeted these premises and used inside knowledge. Mr and Mrs Banga were deeply shocked and upset by this ransacking of their shop.”

Report by Shaun Lintern