A man from Pembroke Dock suffering from problems relating to alcohol abuse, has been given a conditional discharge by Haverfordwest Magistrates along with a two-month curfew, after pleading guilty to separate cases which involved attacking a one-armed neighbour and the theft of wine from supermarkets.

Forty-six-year-old Richard Michael Carey, of 15 Hamilton Court, Pembroke Dock, appeared before the magistrates court on Tuesday, accused of assaulting a neighbour and causing criminal damage to his property.

He also faced three separate charges of theft from stores in the Pembroke Dock area.

Magistrates heard how on June 13, Mr. Carey's neighbour, Darren Bamford, left his house at 5 pm to go for a walk with his two sons, leaving his wife outside in the garden with friends.

Soon after, Mr. Carey appeared from out of his house, angry and mumbling as he approached Mrs. Bamford and the group that she was with.

Mrs. Bamford described him as being wide-eyed and drunk, with his fists clenched at the time.

Later on that evening, after Mr. Bamford had returned home at around 8 pm, Mr. Carey could again be heard shouting loudly from his home.

An hour later, the Bamfords and friends were then startled by a loud bang, and were again approached aggressively by Mr. Carey, who had earlier opened his gate and let his dog out.

He walked towards the group and insisted that they gave his dog back, while also accusing Mrs. Bamford of hitting him earlier.

The group scattered, fearing what Mr. Carey's behaviour might lead to, but he managed to push Mr. Bamford, who only has one arm, into his shed, causing damage to the door, before grabbing him by the throat.

He then let go of his neighbour upon hearing that Mrs. Bamford was on the phone to the police.

Police later went to Mr. Carey's home to speak to him and found him intoxicated and swearing with his arms swaying, and subsequently arrested him.

Magistrates also heard how between June and July, Mr. Carey stole items on three separate occasions from the Tesco and Asda stores in Pembroke Dock, ranging from groceries to bottles of wine.

Mr. Carey's defence told magistrates how the unemployed carpenter had suffered a traumatic period from March onwards when his father passed away and then his mother the following month, which had led to his alcohol misuse.

His wife of six years also left him in May because of his problems with alcohol and this had led to Mr. Carey also losing contact with his son.

He had since sought help to address his alcohol issue with the alcohol advisory service Prism and was seeing a support worker.

Magistrates gave Mr. Carey a conditional discharge with a period of supervision for 12 months, and a two-month curfew from 5 pm to 5 am.

He was ordered to pay his neighbour £50 in compensation for the damage caused to his shed and a further £120 in court costs.