A Pembroke man was jailed this morning after he admitted stealing less than $20 of food from a Hamilton grocer.

David Ray Jr, 42, pleaded guilty to stealing from the MarketPlace on Church Street in an incident yesterday afternoon.

The court heard that a customer told management at the store that they had seen Ray placing items into his bag while in the store. When Ray passed the cash register to leave the store, he was confronted by a manager who asked if he had any items in his bag that he had not paid for.

Ray then produced a carton of hot food and two bottles of Ribena, worth a combined total of $18.14.

Appearing in Magistrates’ Court, Ray apologised for his actions saying he has been struggling since he lost his job last August and made a “stupid mistake”.

Magistrate Khamisi Tokunbo, however, noted Ray’s previous convictions for stealing and burglary, saying that he had yet to pay a $1,000 fine for a previous offence or reimburse the complainant in that case.

“Your record doesn’t help you,” Mr Tokunbo said. “This last incident doesn’t help you. You are not employed, you cannot pay the fine, you cannot pay your past fine.

“You know right from wrong, you know what you are doing. On this occasion, you are going to have to do some time.”

Mr Tokunbo jailed Ray for ten days for the present offence, and ordered that he serve the 100 days of default time for the previous offence.

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