POLICE unwittingly gave a drunk Powys man a lift home after he had stolen hundreds of pounds worth of power tools and equipment from a builder’s merchants.

David Wyn Evans was sitting on the side of the road in Knighton, surrounded by the items he’d stolen from Knighton Builders Merchants on October 26, when two local Dyfed Powys Police officers stopped and offered him a lift home.

The officers noticed Evans, 44, appeared very drunk and they decided to give him a lift home as they feared he might stumble into traffic and get run over.

Evans accepted the kind offer and put the items he had with him in the boot of the police car. It was on the way home that the officers realised something was amiss.

The items in Evans’ possession included a Makita battery drill, a DeWalt impact driver, DeWalt work boots and a Makita hammer driver drill – valued between £700 and £800.

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Evans, of Milbank, Norton, near Presteigne, pleaded guilty to theft when he appeared at Llandrindod Wells Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday, November 22.

Prosecutor Adam Warner said an employee at the Crabtree Walk-based builder’s merchants acted after she noticed Evans “acting suspiciously” at the store.

“An employee said she saw the defendant, who she knows, walking up and down the aisles looking at items,” said Mr Warner.

“She contacted head office and asked them to check the times the defendant was in the store on the CCTV. It shows him leaving the store with some items. He left without making payment.

“PCs Morris and Scott were on patrol at 8.15am, travelling out of Knighton, when they noticed the defendant.

“PCSO Morris knows the defendant and sees him sat on the kerb. PC Scott pulls up alongside him and it seems he is very drunk; he is unable to get up off the floor and he is unsteady on his feet.

“The officers, acting as good Samaritans, decide to give him a lift home, which was four miles away.

“PCSO Morris said the defendant picked up his items and put them in the boot of the police car.

“During the journey home police decided that something about his account of things was not right, so they withheld the items from him and take him home.

“A report then comes in that the items were stolen. It was not very well planned or executed.”

In interview, Evans admitted his guilt, telling officers “I was f*****g wrecked”.

Mr Warner said Evans has a criminal record, including a number of convictions for dishonesty and drugs. He said 2009 was his last dishonesty offence.

Defending Evans, Pat Matthews said her client was “bladdered”.

“He had no idea what he’d been doing,” she said.

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“He’d had far too much to drink. He was sitting on the side of the road, surrounded by the items he’d stolen. He has no explanation for it and gave a bizarre explanation to the police.

“He was so bladdered, they were worried he’d walk into the road and get killed.

“He accepts his guilt, he hasn’t been in trouble for two years prior to this. He didn’t know why he went in there (the builder’s merchant) and picked up the items.

“Everything was recovered as the police took him home and took the goods off him.”

Evans was fined £80 and told to pay £85 costs and a £32 surcharge.