A shoplifter injured a store detective by hitting him over the head with a bottle of champagne he was trying to steal, a court heard.

David Tranter, 47, was stopped by the store detective after he was spotted tampering with security tags on bottles of drink in Sainsbury's in Attleborough.

Mark Roochove, prosecuting, said as Tranter was leaving the shop, a store detective put his hand on his arm to detain him, only for Tranter to turn round and attack him by pulling out a bottle of champagne from his jacket and hitting him over the head.

The blow was severe enough to cause a cut which needed to be glued, Norwich Crown Court heard.

He also threatened to stab the store detective in a bid to get away. When a colleague came to his aid, Tranter had been racially abusive to him.

Mr Roochove said Tranter was arrested for the theft. The bottles of drink amounting to £124, which he had tried to steal, were recovered.

In an impact statement, the store detective said he had been left with a scar on his head and suffered from headaches following the injury.

The court heard that Tranter had 57 convictions for 127 offences.

Tranter, of no fixed address, admitted causing the store detective actual bodily harm and also racially aggravated harassment and theft on October 2, this year.

Jailing him for six months, Judge Katharine Moore told Tranter that it was lucky the store detective was not more badly injured.

'Make this the last time. It really was a matter of luck rather than judgement that he was not far more seriously hurt,' she said.

She said that if Tranter had any cash she would liked to have made him pay compensation as he had left the store detective with a scar.

John Morgans, for Tranter, said that his drug addiction lay behind his offending.

'He accepts with his record it has to be a custodial sentence. It is a long-term difficulty with drugs that has led to his offending.'

He said that Tranter was now determined to come off drugs: 'He is determined to beat that addiction.'

He said that Tranter had no cash but said: 'If he could pay compensation he would. He is genuinely remorseful.