A CAREER criminal who stole more than FIVE-AND-A-HALF-THOUSAND pounds worth of merchandise during a string of shoplifting raids on stores throughout Inverclyde has been jailed.

David Clarke accumulated a huge haul of items — from expensive electrical gear to laundry detergent — over the course of a period spanning three years between 2020 and 2022.

Gourock man Clarke, 44 — who now has more than 100 convictions for crimes of dishonesty stretching back to 2012 — has been given a total sentence of 750 days for his latest litany of offences.

He targeted various businesses throughout the district during his one-man crimewave, including Currys, Sainsbury's, TK Maxx, Boots, The Range, Halford's, Aldi, B&M, Iceland, Sports Direct, Bargain Buys, Farmfoods and Food Warehouse.

Sheriff James Varney told Clarke, of Cardwell Road in Gourock, that there was 'no viable alternative' to prison for the catalogue of offences he had committed.

Only around £1,000 worth of the items Clarke stole were recovered, Greenock Sheriff Court heard.

He helped himself to goods including booze, groceries, electrical goods, meat, watches, fragrances, tanning lotions, face creams, candles and suitcases on multiple occasions.

Other items he stole were an LED projector, electric toothbrushes, a Black and Decker jigsaw, tool kits, chocolates, biscuits and crisps.

Clarke pleaded guilty to dozens of charges across a total of 23 criminal complaints against him.

His lawyer, Aidan Gallagher, told the court: "He accepts that, by his own hand, he has led himself into custody.

"There is a common thread here and the background is one of addiction.

"He has ongoing issues and has also been trying to maintain his tenancy."

Some of Clarke's thefts were committed when he was already on a total of 11 sheriff court bail orders.

He tried to break into Sports Direct on West Stewart Street last March by using 'bodily force' in a bid to prise open its shutter.

Clarke had previously stolen 14 umbrellas from a display outside the shop by grabbing them and running off.

He also helped himself to a Dyson vacuum cleaner and two high-end television sets from Tesco.

Clarke pleaded guilty to a number of failures to adhere to bail conditions by not signing on at Greenock police office on prescribed days as part of an effort to monitor his movements.

He had been barred from Sainsbury's in Gourock when he stole detergent from the shop last November.