Andrew Yallop, 37, had begged to be jailed when he appeared at Norwich Magistrates' Court for a break-in at the Strangers' Hall museum in the city, because he had no money or accommodation.

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But he was told that guidelines introduced by the Ministry of Justice last month to ease prison overcrowding meant he could only get a suspended sentence for the offence.

Magistrates told him: “Our hands are tied here by the new Sentencing Act.”

But berating the bench that he had not been jailed, Yallop, of no fixed abode, yelled: “I’ll just be back here tomorrow.”

And he was true to his word because just two hours after leaving court he kicked and damaged a patrol car outside Bethel Street police station before going inside and asking to be arrested.

Andrew Yallop asked magistrates to be jailed but his sentence was suspended (Image: Newsquest)

It means he was back in the dock within 24 hours of his previous appearance, where his suspended sentence from the day before was activated, meaning he was jailed for six months.

Yallop, who has convictions for 25 previous offences and has previously served time in jail, had argued he wanted to be sent back behind bars because he was "extremely frustrated” at being released from a previous sentence with “no money, accommodation and support”.

He appeared in court on Wednesday where he pleaded guilty to one burglary offence and one of attempted burglary.

One related to a break-in at the Strangers' Hall museum on March 27 when he smashed a window and stole what he thought were an antique silver goblet and tankard.

In fact they were fakes for display purposes.

Items stole in Strangers Hall museum burglary turned out to be fakes (Image: Newsquest)

Michael Cole, mitigating, said: “Obviously if they had been genuine Jacobean silver items they would have been worth in the thousands, but they weren’t.

“They were in fact metal weighed down with lead and when he went to try to sell them he was offered just £100.”

Later he failed in his attempt to break at Press to Play music and DVD shop on St Benedict’s Street when repeated kicks did not break the glass door.

His sentence of six months in jail was suspended, much to his annoyance, because the new guidelines mean sentences of less than 12 months must now be suspended unless in exceptional circumstances.

His hearing on Thursday, in front of different magistrates, was told Yallop had gone to the enquiry desk at Bethel Street after smashing the patrol car and said he had done it because he “wanted to be banged up”.

Yallop told officers at Bethel Street he wanted to be 'banged up' (Image: Newsquest)

The new panel of magistrates admitted they had “no choice but to activate the full prison sentence that was handed out yesterday”.

Mr Cole said: “Unusually, I want to request you implement the suspended sentence in full, and it is not often I say that.”

Magistrates had approved for Yallop to appear in handcuffs after being told he had threatened to “smash up the dock” if they did not jail him.

Both sets of magistrates had considered a financial punishment but were told he already owed more than £13,000 in unpaid court fines.

Mr Cole said: “He has lost all faith in the system.”

© Eastern Daily Press