Mansfield man stole charity box 'after his life turned to s***'

CCTV cameras recorded Marcus Winters as he reached under a clear screen at the Orchard Medical Practice, on Stockwell Gate, on February 26, said prosecutor Becky Allsop.

He took the box which had been used to collect donations for the Babworth Animal Rescue Kennels, in Retford, for five months.

Winters later told police he had recently split from his wife, lost his job, his house and his car and went to the practice to receive treatment for an ulcerated leg.

"He said ‘I was at a low point. It's one of those f***-ups. I wish I could turn the clock back’," said Ms Allsop.

The court was told he used a tin-opener to get into the charity box, which he claimed contained about £26 in notes and coins.

Winters, who represented himself, said: "It was a stupid spur of the moment thing. I shouldn’t have done it.

"I did offer to pay that back to the chemist when I next get paid. It was just silly."

He told the magistrates that he is now being treated for depression and is attempting to find a new job.

Winters, 45, of Lindley Street, Mansfield, admitted theft when he appeared at Mansfield Magistrates Court, on Thursday.

Magistrates told him it was ‘a despicable offence’.

They fined him £120, and ordered him to pay a £34 surcharge, £85 court costs, and £30 compensation to the charity.

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