A Croydon man who was banned from entering any City of London pub for five years has been jailed for two years for stealing from pub-goers.

Rocky Abrams, of Dundee Road, appeared before the City of London Magistrates' Court on September 7 and was sentenced to 28 months in prison after pleading guilty to three counts of theft, six counts of breaching a Criminal Behaviour Order (CBO) and six counts of fraud by false representation.

Abrams, 41, was previously jailed in November last year for 16 offences. During his sentencing he was handed a five-year CBO which prevents him from entering any licensed premises in the City of London until late 2021.

Following his release this summer, Abrams breached the conditions of his CBO on three separate occasions between June and July, and committed a further three counts of theft.

The offences occurred at the Crosse Keys pub on Gracechurch Street, the Monument on Fish Street Hill and the All Bar One on Cannon Street.

On all three occasions Abrams stole wallets from suit jackets hung on the back of chairs and proceeded to use the stolen bankcards in the local area.

The City of London Police was able to identify Abrams from CCTV at all three premises.

Detective Chief Inspector Mark Chapman said: “Abrams was convicted and sentenced for similar thefts last year, when he was also given a CBO for his crimes.

“He has now been further dealt with for this string of new offences, with his sentence reflective of the fact that he breached his order.

“Abrams was clearly under the impression that the Square Mile is an easy target for stealing wallets from coat pockets in pubs and bars – but this is not the case.

“We take crimes of this nature extremely seriously and will use everything at our disposal, including the extensive CCTV network in the City, and the expertise of our officers, to identify people and bring them to justice."