A curfew has been imposed on a Llandisilio man who snapped up an online bargain and received stolen goods.

Kevin Tritton, of Heol y Llan, pleaded guilty to dishonestly received stolen goods when he appeared at Haverfordwest magistrates court on Tuesday, April 9.

The court heard that a Kawasaki Mule worth £5,000 containing a PTO shaft which had been stolen from Boncath, was bought by Tritton on August 17, 2017.

The rightful owner of the 4x4 farm vehicle received a call in April 2018 stating that the vehicle had been found in Somerset.

Dennis Davies, prosecuting, said that the item had been sold for £2,100 via an online bid at a Welshpool sale where Tritton was present.

The buyer, who noticed the identity number had been painted over, was repaid in full when they discovered that the Mule had been stolen and contacted the police.

When interviewed, Tritton, 43, stated he had bought the vehicle from Gumtree for £1,800 in good faith to ‘razzle around in a field’, but was told by a farmer that he ran a risk of being shot at.

Mike Kelleher, defending, said: “Mr Tritton pleads guilty on the basis that he should have realised that there was a reason he got a bargain on Gumtree.

“He did not get any paperwork, which should have put him on notice that something was wrong.”

He added: “He gave his full name and address when he put it in the sale, it was not a planned criminal matter.”

“Having paid for the machine, he did not want to lose all the money he paid for it. It was not possible to use it in the field so it took it to the sale.”

Magistrates imposed a 12-month community order with a four-month 8pm to 6am curfew.

He was ordered to pay £85 costs and an £85 surcharge.