Kyle Henderson, 41, pictured, admitted stealing medications totalling £8,150.65 from L’Aumone Pharmacy, as well as stealing copper from the former Braye Lodge Hotel.
The Royal Court sentenced him to four years for the pharmacy and another 10 months for the offence at the Braye Lodge.
Judge Catherine Fooks said Henderson had an extensive list of convictions relating to dishonesty, violence and drugs.
‘With your record, no other sentence is appropriate,’ she said.
‘Your offending caused loss and damage to the owners of the properties, the loss of valuable medication and the impact on staff and patients. It was a mindless act.’
The incident at L’Aumone Pharmacy took place in February this year in the early hours.
Henderson was joined by another male who was never identified.
CCTV played to the court showed the pair walking around the pharmacy building with a wooden plank, before smashing its glass door with large stones.
Henderson’s bounced off the door, but his accomplice’s shattered the glass.
The defendant was the first to enter and exit the pharmacy.
Shortly after the incident, an ambulance drove past and noticed the alarm, and police were alerted.
A police dog search was unsuccessful but a forensic investigation found DNA recovered from the stones, and from a beer can found under the wooden plank.
The head pharmacist identified that 30 different patient prescriptions had been stolen from a fridge, including eye drops, insulin, inhalers and weight loss medication, totalling £8,150.65.
In a search of Henderson’s home address, no stolen medication was found, nor were the clothes he wore that night.
In interview, he provided passwords to his phone, DNA and finger prints, but exercised his right to silence.
Henderson also admitted the Braye Lodge burglary, which took place in May 2025.
Someone with oversight of the building saw a bicycle outside, entered the hotel and heard disturbance on a floor above.
They contacted police who entered the building and Henderson identified himself. He walked to meet them on the stairs and was arrested on suspicion of burglary.
He told officers he was homeless and had been staying at the former hotel, and there was copper in the building.
Coop bags of copper pipes were found, as were two heaters with the copper pipes removed. A black rucksack was also found with paperwork and bank cards in Henderson’s name.
Defending, Advocate Samuel Steel said Henderson entered early guilty pleas on both counts and knew he would be going back to prison.
He said there were two people involved. Henderson’s brick was not the one which smashed the window, he did not wear gloves and there were no weapons
Advocate Steel said the offence was not premeditated, it was not a gang or organisation, but a man in relapse.
The loss fell on a commercial victim and no victim impact statement was provided.
Regarding the Braye Lodge offence, Advocate Steel said the building was derelict and there was no one around, also the defendant came forward and told the officer that he had been staying there and taking copper.
Henderson had started using drugs when he was a teenager and almost every offence he had committed since then had been to find drugs.
He apologised through his advocate and said he had been responding positively to structure and help in prison.
Judge Fooks also commended the ambulance crew who raised the alarm for the pharmacy burglary.