A DRUG dealer from Malmesbury who peddled heroin and crack cocaine is finally behind bars after being caught stealing Disney DVDs.

Kyle Brace was spared jail last month despite going out stealing just days after being put on a suspended sentence for selling the class A drugs.

But again, within days of his release, the 20-year-old was caught taking Disney DVDs and a razor from another town centre store.

And even though he is finally serving the jail term a judge ruled he only had to activate eight months of the 22 month suspended sentence.

Judge Tim Mousley QC initially told Brace he had his mum to thank when he spared him custody in January.

Ronan McCann, defending, said his client's youth had been blighted with drug abuse and he was finally providing clean tests.

Since his latest arrest in early March he said he had returned to his mother's home and abided by a night time curfew.

He said as well as engaging with the probation service he had also received a £4,000 back payment of benefits and used it, not to buy drugs, but pay off old court fines.

Mr McCann asked the court to defer passing sentence to give his client a chance to continue with his progress in the community.

But the judge said "Kyle Brace, over recent months and perhaps longer the court have given you chance after chance after chance.

"The court has been pretty lenient with you in not sending you to prison.

"I have come to the conclusion that the time has come for you to serve a custodial sentence."

Brace, of Athelston Place, Malmesbury, previously pleaded guilty to burglary, two thefts, and breaching a suspended sentence.

Brace had been caught by police twice within a few weeks early last year as he peddled drugs in Chippenham.

He was first arrested in the Wetherspoon's pub on Tuesday January 14 last year after someone spotted drug dealing taking place.

When officers arrived they searched Brace, who was with another man, and found he had eight wraps of heroin and crack on him, with another six in a bag he had dropped.

His phone was found to have received 1,181 incoming calls of less than a minute and 300 texts: indicative of a drug dealer receiving orders from users.