A WANNABE chef who was spared jail for breaking into an occupied house was told he was getting a chance to start a new chapter in his life.

Recorder John Bate-Williams said he could grant burglar Michael Lewin "one chance and one chance only" when he decided not to send him to prison.

But the recorder told Lewin's co-defendant Lenny Trinder he must either overcome his drug and alcohol addictions or he would die young.

While both 28-year-olds were given two-year prison sentences, Recorder Bate-Williams said he could suspend Lewin's for 18 months.

He added: "Michael Lewin, it is said by your counsel that you may have reached a turning point in your life

"But the critical question is whether this is a false start or the beginning of a new and better part of your life.

"I am prepared to take an unusual course to give you one chance and one chance only."

But he told Trinder he had to make a choice about his future and added: "Either you continue the miserable life you have imposed upon yourself through drink and drugs, in which case, frankly you're likely to die young, or you can accept you have a serious addiction problem and try to overcome it."

The court heard Trinder and Lewin broke into a house in West Street, Chipping Norton, in May last year, and stole a wallet with £400 cash and 300 Euros, as well as bank cards and car keys.

Prosecutor Gemma Delaney told Oxford Crown Court on Thursday the occupants had been sleeping upstairs when one of them heard noises.

She added: "She went to bed as usual and reported at various times throughout the night disturbances she heard downstairs, but at that stage, not believing they were coming from her property.

"Notably, at around 2 o'clock in the morning, she heard a man's voice saying 'just take the ****ing TV'."

The burglary came to light when police arrived at the home at about 4.45am and told the woman a Mazda registered to that address had been found abandoned nearby.

Lewin, of Whitehouse Road, Oxford, denied the raid, but was found guilty following a trial in March.

Jollyon Robertson, defending Lewin, said the father-of-two has been working in the kitchens of the Hollybush in Witney since December and wanted to get his chef's qualifications.

He added: "He seems to have turned a corner and is leading a commendable life.

"He wants to be a proper father, he wants to be a good father."

Trinder, of Fox Close, Chipping Norton, admitted the burglary at a hearing in October.

Graham Bennett, defending Trinder, said his client - who arrived half-an-hour late for the hearing - had longstanding drink and drug problems and lived a chaotic lifestyle.

But Recorder Bate-Williams said the victims had been subjected to a "dreadful experience" by having the pair raid their home.

Lewin was also made subject to an electronically monitored curfew for four months and ordered to pay £500 compensation.