A man from Milford has been charged in court after admitting stealing copper piping from a skip.

Thirty-two-year-old Leonard Bath, of Waterston, pleaded guilty to the theft of copper piping when he appeared at Haverfordwest Magistrates Court on Tuesday.

Prosecutor Vaughan Pritchard-Jones told the court that the complainant, who lived in Haverfordwest, was renovating his house when the theft occurred.

“The victim had a skip outside the property, and had an agreement with the skip hire company that any metal put in the skip that was sold on would be deducted from the price of the skip hire.

“He had taken the central heating out and realised one day that the piping left in the skip had gone.

“The victim’s neighbour had CCTV, and when viewed, it showed the defendant and another man turning up and loading the piping and making off,” added Mr. Pritchard-Jones.

Defence solicitor Mark Layton told the court that this was a difficult case as it just about crossed the border into criminal behaviour.

“People see things in skips and tend to think that they can take them,” he told the court.

Magistrates gave Mr. Bath a conditional discharge and ordered him to pay compensation of £40 to the victim.

He was also ordered to pay prosecution costs of £85 and a £20 victim surcharge.