A reformed drug addict has admitted stealing two laptops worth €5,000 to try to get rid of the debt he racked up to fuel his habit.

Francel Scerri, 24, from Vittoriosa, stole the equipment from his foreign neighbours last Friday, after they left the house with the main door open but a secondary glass door closed, Police Inspector Robert Said Sarreo testified.

He said the laptops meant everything to the victims because they worked on them from home.

Mr Scerri had managed to kick his habit but still owed a lot of money from his days of doing drugs, the inspector said.

He felt the accused should not be imprisoned, especially since he had managed to reform.

Mr Scerri’s lawyer Cedric Mifsud seconded the inspector’s call for leniency and noted the laptops had been returned.

Magistrate Neville Camilleri put him on probation for three years and also placed his neighbours under a protection order.

Mr Scerri was ordered not to speak to them, under a personal guarantee of €1,000.