A 45-year-old man has been jailed for 20 months for breaching his Asbo for the 11th time, theft and assaulting police who apprehended him when he went to get a stolen Rolex valued.

Darren Wakeling was seen on CCTV going into jewellers Jackson in The Parade, Watford, on August 7, where he went to get a £4,000 Rolex Mariner watch belonging to Mark Stanly valued.

Mr Stanly lost the watch five days earlier when he took it off in the maternity ward of Watford General to assist with his new born child.

Wakeling, of Caractacus Cottage View, Watford, claimed to have found it in Whippendell Road after he was arrested.

Police initially had no idea Wakeling had the expensive watch, but arrived at the jewellers after seeing him on CCTV because he is banned from the town centre by an Asbo.

Inside the shop Wakeling and his girlfriend Charmaine Carter had asked for a valuation.

When police arrived Carter picked up the watch and they both ran from the shop only to be apprehended nearby.

Wakeling was arrested after a struggle and racially abused and assaulted PC Nicholas Achilleos at the police station.

Wakeling pleaded guilty to theft by finding, racially aggravated assault on police and breach of Asbo at a previous hearing.

As a result at St Albans Crown Court today the prosecution dropped a charge of handling stolen goods against Carter.

Carter kissed her co-defendant and said “Bye Darren, love you, love you baby” as she left the dock for Wakeling to be sentenced alone.

In mitigation the court heard Wakeling spent his childhood in care and had been homeless after that.

He had trouble with alcohol and abused and assaulted PC Achilleos, who is of Greek origin, but Wakeling assumed was of another nationality, as he was the “main instigator of his heavy-handed arrest”.

After 11 breaches of the Asbo and a number of jail sentences for 82 offences including assault on police and others of violence and dishonesty, Wakeling has “for the first time realised his temper gets him in trouble”, the court was told.

He was on a course to deal with his anger and was “determined” to address his alcohol problem and would be moving from the area when released from prison.

Judge Martin Griffith jailed Wakeling for a total of 20 months.

He said: “I hope what has been said is right and you are beginning to seek some way to control yourself.”

Wakeling replied: “When I had time to think about what I had done I realised I am pathetic and stupid and said what I did out of spite.”

Judge Griffith ordered 93 days spent on remand to count towards the sentence.