A suspended sentence has been handed to a Haverfordwest man found in possession of a lock knife and drugs.

Ross Nelmes, of Hill Street, pleaded guilty to criminal damage, possession of an offensive weapon in a public place and Class A and B drug possession when he appeared before Haverfordwest magistrates on Tuesday, July 21.

Vaughan Pritchard-Jones, prosecuting, said police were called to a Haverfordwest house at around 10pm on Boxing Day, where a communal front door had been smashed.

Nelmes, 24, and another man were arrested, and he was found to be in possession of a lock knife eight MDMA tablets and 1.5 grams of amphetamine.

The court heard Nelmes had previous convictions for drug and theft offences, and had relapsed into drug use during the festive season.

He was unaware he was carrying the knife at the time, but could not remember much about the evening as he was under the influence of drugs and alcohol.

Tom Lloyd, defending, said Nelmes was ‘gutted’ to find himself facing prison, and had immediately admitted the offences.

“He can’t remember large parts of the incident. He was taken to hospital because he was in such a bad way after taking a lot of drugs.

“Drugs are the root cause of his offending and he is addressing that problem.”

Magistrates sentenced Nelmes to 24 weeks in prison, suspended for 18 months with a 15-day rehabilitation order and 120 hours of unpaid work.

The chairman of the bench said: “We are suspending your sentence because your circumstances have changed and we are giving you the opportunity to maintain your positive life improvements.

He was ordered to pay £384 in compensation, costs, and a surcharge.

A destruction order was made for the drugs and the knife.