$22,000 worth of goods -- was put behind bars on Thursday.

Nineteen-year-old Wendell Lovell carried out a seven-month crime wave, stealing jewellery, cash and electrical goods, ending last November.

He was sentenced to corrective training by Chief Justice Austin Ward in Supreme Court.

The punishment means Lovell, of South Shore Road, Smith's Parish, will be locked up for between nine months and three years, "depending on progress''.

And the judge urged him to set up a repayment plan so his burglary victims could be compensated.

The defendant pleaded guilty to ten counts of breaking and entering, targeting properties around Smith's and Hamilton Parish.

More than $3,000 worth of his stolen goods has already been recovered.

Lovell appealed to be given a probation period, and a chance to clean up his act and start making repayments to his victims.

His lawyer, Renee Foggo, said three months on remand had given him a "short, sharp shock''.

But Mr. Justice Ward said: "Probation would not meet the justice of the case'', ordering corrective training at Ferry Reach.

The Chief Justice used the case to launch an attack on Bermuda's prison system and one of the Island's top schools.

And he said a tougher, harder line should be adopted in our jails.

Mr. Justice Ward said: "They should beef up the prison system. People want to go back there because they are welcome.

"Life isn't a joke and people must learn that early.'' He noted that Lovell was a former Berkeley Institute student, adding: "Berkeley used to be a school that produced people with personal pride.

"Now they go fighting on fields,'' referring to an outbreak of violence at the school on Wednesday. "I don't know what's happening with that place.''