A THUG has admitted stashing two kitchen knives with blades of more than seven inches in a stolen car which he drove to a supermarket.

Rhys Hennebry was behind the wheel of a black Kia Sportage was driven into the petrol station at Tesco Hythe on Monday.

The vehicle had previously been reported stolen, and despite different registration plates being used, a security alert was triggered on the supermarket’s surveillance system.

Staff called police who attended immediately and found Hennebry, 24, inside the car.

Officers searched the vehicle and found two knives - one 7.5 inch blade under the passenger seat and a larger 9.5 inch kitchen knife concealed in the driver side door.

Further checks showed the Sportage was the one which had been reported as stolen.

The owner had parked the £14,000 car outside their Colchester home on March 24.

But the next morning they discovered the car was missing and the key had been removed from their house.

During a short hearing at Colchester Magistrates’ Court, Hennebry admitted possession of a bladed article in a public place and receiving stolen goods.

Hennebry has previous convictions, including when he was jailed for three years for affray in 2014.

He had hit Jay Whiston over the head with a bottle just seconds before the 17-year-old was knifed in the heart and killed by Edward Redman at Colchester house party which had turned violent.

Hennebry served just half of his sentence before released.

Redman was convicted of murder and jailed for 17 years.

The tragic death of Clacton youngster Jay led to his mother Caroline Shearer launching a charity called Only Cowards Carry aiming to teach youngsters about the dangers of carrying weapons, working closely with Essex Police and helping to install knife amnesty bins across the county.

Magistrates declined jurisdiction of the latest offence saying it was too serious for them to deal with.

Hennebry was released on bail on the conditions he lived and slept at his address in Deck Place, Colchester, and reported to Colchester Police Station every day between 2pm and 4pm.

The Crown Prosecution Service did not oppose bail.

Gemma Lee, defending, said Hennebry was aware he was in a precarious position and knew he was likely to go back to jail when he is sentenced at Chelmsford Crown Court in July.

Addressing Hennebry, chairman of the bench Linda Mackenzie said: “These offences are so serious you need greater punishment than we can give.

“If you breach any of your bail conditions you can be brought back to custody.

“We have put these conditions in to ensure you attend court on the next occasion.”