A KIDDERMINSTER man tried to smuggle cannabis resin into prison out of a misguided sense of loyalty to his brother, Worcester Crown Court heard.

Michaelangelo Maffei was spotted on CCTV cameras at Blakenhurst, near Redditch, as he passed the drug in a crisp bag, said Jane Sarginson, prosecuting.

He told police he was answering a plea for help from his brother Mario, who was serving a sentence.

Maffei, 24, of George Street, Kidderminster, admitted supplying the drug but escaped custody in what Judge Michael Mott termed an "exceptional" sentence.

A qualified joiner and carpenter, he was ordered to do 200 hours unpaid work for the community and to pay £176 costs. The judge said trying to smuggle drugs into prison normally merited custody in terms of months, if not years.

Lee Masters, defending, said the case was a tragedy for a young man who had hitherto led a blameless life. His parish priest had given him a glowing reference. Maffei had given invaluable help to a relative suffering from clinical depression to prevent him committing suicide.

In a moment of stupidity, he had acceded to his brother's request for cannabis in misguided family loyalty.