A depressed postman who opened and stole money from mail he was supposed to be delivering has been jailed for three months.

Bradford Magistrates Court was told that 49-year-old Martin Smith admitted opening 102 items of mail and stealing a total of £110 in cash that he found inside.

Andrew Vickers, prosecuting on behalf of the post office, told the court that a covert surveillance operation had been set up after suspicions about Smith had been aroused.

He was seen on video over two days in July opening mail that had been sorted for him to deliver on his round and taking out money that he had found inside greetings cards.

When he was interviewed the next day he admitted what he had done and said that he had been doing the same thing on the day before the equipment was set up.

In court Smith, of Upper Mosscar Street, Barkerend, pleaded guilty to three charges of theft from an employer.

He also pleaded guilty to two charges of breach of a curfew order which was imposed for driving whilst disqualified and taking a vehicle without the owner's consent.

His solicitor, Stuart Carter, told the court that Smith was suffering from depression and only had limited previous convictions.

"This man is receiving treatment with regard to mental health. He is suffering from alcoholism and also has gambling issues as well."

Mr Carter added that Smith had been admitted to Lynfield Mount hospital after he had been on a "drunken binge".

He urged the magistrates not to send his client to prison saying that he had got another job and was trying his best to overcome his problems.

"He is not the sort of person who would benefit in any way from a custodial sentence but could go further into the ground than he is at the moment. The man could be help at the same time as being punished."

But chairman of the Bench Martin Harrison told Smith that the offence was so serious that only a custodial sentence was justified, adding that the offences were aggravated because they were a breach of trust.

"The public's trust in you was implicit," he said.