A shoplifter who was caught stealing David Beckham fragrances has managed to put an end to his drug problem, Bournemouth magistrate court heard yesterday.
Mr Alan William James Cook, 44, of 12 Tregonwell Road, Bournemouth was caught attempting to steal two fragrance box sets from Superdrug on Christmas Eve, 2011. Cook, who has six children, claimed they were to be given as presents. He was given conditional bale but failed to attend court on the 27th January 2012.
Yesterday he pleaded guilty to the charges of theft from a shop and breaching the bale conditions.
Cook was represented by Mr O’Neil, who told the magistrates how Cook had approached him before his first court date and told him how he was “struggling with the drugs” and that “time in custody might be the best thing for him”.
However, according to the defence, Cook’s life has changed considerably since this meeting. A friend introduced him to the Bournemouth Vineyard Church in Charminster. The church runs sessions for those fighting addiction and also helps them get into detox/rehabilitation programmes. Cook says participation in one of these detox programmes was the reason he missed the court appearance on 27th January.
Mr O’Neil told the court that Cook is now clean from drugs. He has also been presented with an opportunity to get back into work, making use of the valuable contacts he made during his time as an energy consultant.
The chairman of the bench congratulated Cook on the success of his treatment and encouraged him to pursue the work opportunity. The court agreed to adjourn the case until 6th March so that they could work with probation services to establish a sentence and DRR (Drug Rehabilitation Requirements) that took recent developments into consideration.
