A tenant at a Kidderminster block of flats found his landlord's skeleton keys and used them to steal from his neighbours, Worcester Crown Court heard.

Mark Jones stole £750 worth of property from three tenants, including forcing their electricity meters, said Alex Warren, prosecuting.

Jones, 24, of Aster Avenue, Kidderminster, was jailed for 15 months for what Judge Michael Mott termed "a mean series of offences."

Jones pleaded guilty to committing the burglaries while he was living in Wood Street. He also admitted twice driving away from petrol stations without paying for fuel and twice failing to answer bail.

Fellow tenants in Wood Street called in police after noticing property was missing and their meters forced. It was then Jones revealed he had found the landlord's keys and used them to enter the other flats.

Jones, who had 16 previous convictions for theft, was said by Nicolas Cartwright, defending, to have blighted his life when he was introduced to heroin two and a half years ago.

He lost his job and needed cash to pay for the drug.