Man jailed for stealing Audi from marina and then dumping it damaged on a verge

Cahir McFall, with an address listed as Crawfordsburn, Maghera, but now given as Ampertaine Road, Upperlands, took the car in June last year and it was later found damaged.

There had also been an e-bike on the roof rack and a mobile phone inside the car.

The car owner was present at Ballymena Magistrates' Court on Thursday for sentencing.

The theft was captured on CCTV.

The woman had a tracking app on her mobile phone and it was found at a grass verge.

She was then told her car was in Draperstown and police recovered it.

An e-bike was missing from a bike rack and the steering column was damaged.

CCTV from Draperstown showed the suspect appeared to match the male on the original Portglenone CCTV.

DNA from the steering wheel led to McFall being caught.

Some £280 worth of repairs were needed to the car.

A defence barrister said McFall had pleaded guilty and "regrets" his actions and apologises.

The court was told he had been "associating with negative peers" and had addiction issues with drugs and alcohol.

District Judge Nigel Broderick said he was "particularly moved" by a personal statement from the victim.

The judge said that all too often the implications of such offences can be "easily overlooked" but her statement "showed the effects".

He said she had suffered financial loss, significant inconvenience and "some emotional trauma as a result of being the victim of a senseless crime".

He jailed the defendant, who had a record, for six months along with a one year driving ban.

The defendant had bail in the sum of £500 fixed for appeal against the sentence.