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A thief was caught after he accidentally disturbed wasp nest while urinating during his getaway, a court heard.

Jamie Brown, 29, was caught by cops who saw him crying in pain.

Brown spent six hours in agony at Leeds General Infirmary, before being discharged and appearing before magistrates today.

Leeds Magistrates Court heard Brown had attempted to make off with the £200 fish tank but as cops swarmed the area Brown relieved himself in a bush home to a nest of wasps and fled from the crime scene - catching their attention.

Brown pleaded guilty to a charge of theft which the court heard breached a suspended sentence for a previous theft and a ban from entering the homeware store.

Lorraine Harris, prosecuting, said: "The alarm was triggered and police were called, parking their car near to the store.

"Police saw the defendant running towards them. He was sweating heavily and rubbing his head.

"He said he was running home and had been attacked by wasps. A witness said she saw him wearing gloves, which they later found with the fish tank.

"He had gone into the bushes to relieve himself.

"Due to the number of wasps in the nest he was taken to hospital. The glove marks were found and a foot print recovered.

"When asked why he was in the area he said he was visiting his aunt."

The court heard Brown has a number of previous convictions for theft.

He will be sentenced this afternoon.