A PRISONER at HMP Berwyn who smashed up his cell has been ordered to serve an extra 28 days in prison.

Lee Michael Groves, 25, totally destroyed his room at the Wrexham facility, causing damage estimated at more than £2,500 during the incident on September 10.

Groves, who appeared from custody at Wrexham Magistrates Court, had repeatedly damaged property at the new prison but told the court his pattern of behaviour only started after being transferred there.

Rhian Jackson, prosecuting, said Groves, of Condron Road, Litherland, Merseyside, had damaged a desk, sink, observation panel and ripped up flooring in his cell before he was moved to another room and then to HMP Altcourse in Liverpool.

Similar incidents had occurred on August 10, October 26 and October 27.

A statement from a member of staff at HMP Berwyn was read out in court which said the damage to the cell could take up to seven weeks to repair and would place "a burden on the public purse" as well as having a knock-on effect on establishments which were already under pressure.

The court heard Groves had been sentenced in April 2016 for conspiring to supply class A drugs and had 14 months left to serve on his sentence.

Bethan Jones, defending, urged the bench to be lenient as the prison would also be dealing with the matter.

Magistrates' chairman Catherine Wantling said she could understand that Groves was feeling "a lot of frustration" but she felt he could be engaging more with HMP Berwyn's rehabilitation programmes.

She said: "You are a young man and I want you to seize this opportunity.

"Carry on in this way and you are going to keep adding time to your sentence."

Ms Wantling ordered Groves to pay compensation of £1,250 and added 28 days to his sentence.

She did not impose any costs or a victim surcharge.