A youth who went joyriding after stealing a disabled woman's £3,600 wheelchair has been electronically tagged.

The 15-year-old from Worthing, who cannot be named, played on the electronically-powered chair at Worthing Hospital after taking it from a loading bay on October 17.

He appeared at Worthing Youth Court yesterday.

Nigel Creasy, prosecuting, said the youth and two others were recorded on CCTV cameras entering the loading bay and climbing on to hospital worker Carole King's chair.

Initially, the youth denied the theft but later admitted committing the offence at a trial on February 24.

Mr Creasy said: "The youth accepted, during a police interview, that he entered the building and drove the chair out.

"They all drove the chair around the loading bay. It was driven out of the hospital grounds by an unknown juvenile (the youth), who was part of the group following the wheelchair.

"The wheelchair was hidden somewhere in the Teville Gate area of Worthing. It has not been recovered."

Peter Long, defending, said: "My client accepted the guilty plea on the basis he did not know where the property was and there was no financial gain to him. It was best described as a prank which effectively went wrong."

The youth was given a two-month curfew order, which involves him being electronically tagged, to ensure he is at home from 8pm to 7am. His parents were ordered to pay £150 compensation but there was no order for court costs.