Thief stole wallet belonging to another passenger while going through airport security
A man convicted of stealing a wallet belonging to another passenger at the search area at Belfast International Airport has been given a suspended jail sentence.
A court was told the victim was unable to catch an international flight because his passport was in the wallet and had to wait until the next day to travel.
By that stage police had caught Paul Conor Baxter (40), in Scotland to where he had flown. The wallet was recovered and flown back to Belfast.
The incident left the victim out of pocket to the tune of £231 because he had to book another flight and get overnight accommodation.
Baxter, with an address at Cottage Mews in Ballymena, had contested the case previously and had been convicted.
He was at Antrim Magistrates' Court, sitting in Ballymena, for sentencing on Tuesday. A prosecutor said on October 11 last year police received a report of the theft of a passenger's wallet from the central search area.
CCTV showed a male taking a wallet. Baxter was identified and he had departed on a flight to Edinburgh. Police Scotland stopped him and the wallet was recovered.
When interviewed, the defendant claimed it had been a "mix up" as the wallet was similar to his but the prosecutor said Baxter's wallet was brown and the victim's black. CCTV also showed Baxter looking inside the wallet before taking it. The defendant brought £231 compensation to court.
The court head the defendant had been sentenced at Antrim Crown Court in 2018 for eight and a half years with half being in custody and the rest being prison release licence which runs up until 2026.
A defence barrister said a pre-sentence report said the defendant was "doing well" since his release on licence and a decision was taken not to revoke the licence. District Judge Nigel Broderick said after stealing the wallet, the defendant had gone "through the rigmarole of pretending" the wallet was his and he had "convinced the security guard that it belongs to you".
In Scotland the defendant was the last off the plane and pretended to take photographs but when stopped he was in possession of the wallet, the judge said.
The judge said the victim had expense and inconvenience of spending a night in alternative accommodation.
Judge Broderick said there was every reason Baxter should be jailed but the only reason he was not sending him to prison was because he had brought full restitution to court.
The defendant was given a six months prison term, suspended for three years.