A serial burglar with a criminal record that ?stands out like a beacon? is behind bars today for a string of offences in Sandys.

The Supreme Court heard the public needed protection from drug addict Ernest James Smith.

?He?s a threat to society,? said Crown counsel Anthony Blackman. ?He seems to have difficulty curbing his appetite for people?s property.?

Mr. Blackman said Smith was normally a ?reasonable person? to deal with, but when he got involved with illegal drugs his personality seemed to change.

The prosecutor, who said relatives had raised concerns about the defendant?s behaviour, added: ?Not only should society be protected from him but he also should be protected from himself.?

Smith was yesterday jailed for three years after admitting two burglary and three break-in offences in Sandys in May.

He was also given a two-year probation order ? to be completed after he serves his prison sentence ? in a bid to help him combat his addiction.

The court heard how on one occasion Smith entered a house in Sandys after midnight. But when the resident was alerted to noises and shouted at him, Smith escaped through an open kitchen window. A search revealed two handbags, personal items and cash were missing.

In another incident, the defendant called at a Sandys house and asked to borrow $13 to fix a punctured bike tyre.

The resident left Smith standing outside his door to get cash. The court heard he was away for ?less than one minute? before his wife?s bag, containing a cheque book and wallet, was snatched.

At another house in Somerset Lane, the occupant went to bed and locked the property before she was woken by a noise from the living room. She found the defendant, who later escaped, cutting a bedroom window screen.

Mr. Blackman said Police were also alerted after living room shutters were found open and glass smashed at another home in the same parish. A kitchen drawer had been opened, the complainant said, but nothing was stolen.

The final incident saw Smith enter a Sandys house through a kitchen window and steal cash and personal items.

Mr. Blackman said Smith, a former truck driver, admitted the offences when interviewed by Police.

Det. Con. Brian Robinson said Smith had been released from prison last April after serving two years for two breaking and entering offences in 2003.

The Supreme Court also heard the 42-year-old, of no fixed abode, had committed a string of similar offences over the years and had been kicked off a drug treatment programme for failure to comply.

Lawyer Charles Richardson, for Smith, said his client?s ?extensive history? of offending was linked to addiction.

He said the defendant, who came from a strict family background, was arrested in connection with one offence in Sandys but admitted the others when they were raised by Police.

Smith apologised for his behaviour in court yesterday.

And he told Puisne Judge Charles-Etta Simmons that he wanted to turn his life around so he could help support his son.