A 19-year-old was given a stark warning by a judge: “Give up drugs, or face a life of mental illness.”

Benjamin Arscott faced being thrown out by his family after being caught stealing a laptop.

Arscott, a binman, of Redwood Close, Canterbury, narrowly escaped an immediate jail sentence in December, last year, for robbing a 15-year-old.

Then he was given a 12-month suspended sentence and given help to beat his drugs addiction.

Canterbury Crown Court heard how in February he gatecrashed a party in Gordon Road, Canterbury, and was caught stealing a laptop.

Lucy Luttman, defending, said he was a disappointment to his family who had told him if he was jailed “they would wash their hands of him.”

“His parents have told him that this is it,” she said. “If he goes to prison they are not interested in going to see him.

“They are not interested in taking him back into the family home. In fact, they wash their hands of him.”

Judge Adele Williams told Arscott: “You were given a chance after the robbery and you messed up that chance.

“Stop using all illegal substances. Your continued use of cannabis and anything else will cause you to tip over into serious mental ill-health. The choice is all yours.”

Arscott, who admitted burglary, was given a community order for 12 months and ordered to do 150 hours of unpaid work.