Man refused High Court bail over theft of disabled man’s £300 smart phone

AN alleged thief targeted a disabled man to steal his £300 smart phone, the High Court has heard. 

David Weir is accused of fleeing from a Belfast hotel with the device after borrowing it from the wheelchair user victim.

The 30-year-old, of Berlin Street, off the Shankill Road in west Belfast, faces a charge of theft over the incident on Saturday, June 29.

It was claimed during a bail hearing that he approached the victim and his partner at Jury’s Inn and first offered them drugs.

Kate McKay, prosecuting, said the offer was refused before the man agreed to lend Weir his phone.

“The man in the wheelchair asked his partner to accompany this gentleman to make sure he didn’t make off with his phone,” she told the court.

“But unfortunately that’s exactly what he did do.”

Weir was later arrested and told police he couldn’t remember anything about the incident.

He claimed, however, that he bought the phone for £20 from a group of men outside a university campus in the city.

Refusing bail, Mr Justice Weir ruled: “There is a well-developed risk that if released on bail he would commit further offences.”