A bereaved West Molesey father was driven to steal by his heroin addiction, a court heard.

30-year-old Iqbal Meha, of Challoner’s Close, was handed a six week prison sentence at Kingston Magistrates’ Court on February 1, after pleading guilty to two counts of theft and possession of cannabis.

Having just completed a three month stint in prison before Christmas, Meha was arrested twice in Kingston, first on January 9, when he was cornered by a police community support officer for stealing digital photo frames from the Bentall Centre.

While on police bail, Meha was arrested again on January 30, for stealing mobile phone sim cards from the Clas Ohlson electronics store, where he was also found to have a small amount of cannabis in his pocket.

Speaking on Meha’s behalf, defence counsel Ovais Kadri claimed the defendant had “completely cracked” after the death of his child and the breakup of his marriage.

Mr Kadri said: “This man has been through a terrible tragedy. He started taking drugs and in order to fuel the drug habit he started stealing.

“He never got counselling for the death of his child. When he gets depressed and vulnerable he starts doing stupid things.”

Meha was also in breach of a court order which banned him from going to Kingston town centre, unless going to Kingston police station or the Kaleidoscope rehabilitation clinic, where he receives methadone for his heroin addiction.

Magistrate Lawrence Day said the court had to send Meha back to prison because of a flagrant breach of previous court orders.

Mr Day said: “We find the matters so serious because they were committed so soon after your release.

“The offences were committed while you were on bail and you failed to comply with previous orders.”

Meha was given two six week sentences, to run concurrently, and will serve the remaining four weeks of a previous suspended sentence.

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