A convicted burglar caught with a mobile phone in prison told a judge that he had already been punished by the governor.

Mark Newsome, 52, had already admitted the offence of possession of a phone at HMP Bullingdon last March when his case came before Oxford Crown Court for sentencing last week.

But the Milton Keynes man told Judge Ian Pringle KC that the case had already gone to an adjudication with the prison governor.

As a result of having the prohibited mobile phone he had lost his job in the prison, lost earnings and had been stripped of a number of privileges.

READ MORE: Inside Oxfordshire's largest prison

“I was punished in there. I was then released and then four months later got a letter stating I had to appear at court,” Newsome told the judge.

“As far as I’m concerned, I’ve already been punished for it once and I’m now being punished for it again.”

Judge Pringle asked prosecutor Bethan Chichester to confirm what the defendant was saying. “If that’s the case this prosecution is not well-founded,” he said of Newsome’s revelations.

He put the matter back until August 4. He said: “I will speak to one of my judges who’s going to take this case from me. I will speak with one of my judges so they know what the score is.”

Newsome, of Two Mile Ash, Milton Keynes, was readmitted to bail.

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