A sneak thief who crept into a staff room at Plymouth Life Centre managed to leave his jacket behind, a court heard.
Prolific offender Jon-Paul Collins, aged 40, left empty-handed after he was disturbed by a lifeguard.
He also had to return to the complex the next day to get his jacket – only to find the police were looking for him.
Collins, of Old Laira Road, denies burglary but pleaded guilty to attempted theft on the eve of his trial at Plymouth Crown Court.
Prosecutors accepted his plea and the jury were sent home.
Collins has 51 convictions for 137 offences, including dozens for dishonesty.
He was on licence at the time of the Life Centre offence after going to jail for two years for wounding.
But a judge told him he could avoid sending him back to prison because of the good progress he had made since the offence way back in February 27 last year.
Mike Brown, for the Crown Prosecution Service, said Collins sneaked into the Life Centre in Central Park between 5.30pm and 6pm.
He said it was not known how he got in but he may have “tailgated”, or slipped in behind a paying customer.
Mr Brown said that Collins walked about for around 20 minutes without showing much interest in the sports or activities on offer.
He added that a lifeguard returned to a staff room to find Collins bent down over the contents of a locker strewn over the floor.
The member of staff told him to leave and he departed empty-handed.
The barrister said that Collins came back the next day looking for his jacket, only to be told it had been seized by police.
Nick Lewin, for Collins, said his client’s early life was a “tragic story” which led to addiction.
He added: “At the age of 40 he seems to have turned a corner. He is drug-free and has a settled tenancy.”
Recorder Richard Shepherd said that Collins had stayed out of trouble since the offence.
He handed him a 12-month community order with 80 hours unpaid work and 20 days probation supervision.
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