A PROLIFIC thief had to be woken up by his solicitor moments before he was sent to jail.

Nicholas Welch was caught stealing a coffee machine worth more than £400 from Steamer Trading, in Westquay.

He committed the theft just three days after he was given a suspended prison sentence for taking chocolate from another shop.

It was the 39-year-old’s 63rd conviction for theft-related matters across Southampton since he started racking up offences in 2001.

As he was about to be sentenced at Southampton Magistrates’ Court, Welch dozed off and had to be stirred by his counsel, Will Day.

The court heard that Welch had gone into the cooking supplies store and made off with an Nespresso Delonghi Lattissima Pro coffee maker without making any attempt to pay for the high-end product.

He was later arrested after being identified on CCTV following the incident on January 5 this year.

Three days prior, the same court handed him a 12-week prison sentence, suspended for 12 months, for stealing six boxes of chocolates from a Co-op store.

Prosecutor Natalie Angel urged the court to activate the sentence due to his “poor record of offending”.

Mr Day, mitigating, told the court Welch had struggled with an ulcer on his leg, which was the result of heavy drug use through his life.

He said that Welch was concerned that if he went into custody he may not receive the correct treatment for the leg as it needed important medical attention.

Welch, of Cranbury Avenue, Southampton, pleaded guilty to theft and was sentenced to 12 weeks’ imprisonment by magistrates.

He was ordered to pay £429.95 in compensation to replace the coffee machine, which was never retrieved.