A WATERSPORTS enthusiast who stole a speedboat and used it to wakeboard on Windermere has been fined £250 today (Tuesday).

Jingo Angus Orlando Merrett-Barker, 18, of Park Road Windermere took the boat from Old Fallbarrow Boatyard in Bowness on June 29, after hacking through a heavy duty security chain using a chainsaw.

Prosecuting, Lisa O’Loughlin told South Lakeland Magistrates Court that Merrett-Barker had used his knowledge of boats to obtain a suitable ignition key for the vehicle a few days earlier.

She said he had taken the boat onto the water for around half an hour and had moored it up while we worked a shift at the Wheelhouse nightclub at Glebe Road.

“He finished work at around 3am and then went back out on the boat for the rest of the night,” she said.

The court heard how Merret-Barker ran out of fuel the following morning and was arrested by police.

Mitigating, Rachel Broughton said Merret-Barker had difficulty making “appropriate decisions” and had intended to return the boat.

She said he was sorry for his actions, adding: “He describes himself as a watersports enthusiast and perhaps that enthusiasm boiled over on this occasion.”

Merret-Barker was fined £250 and was ordered to pay a victim’s surcharge of £15 and court costs of £60.

He was also ordered to pay £136.28 compensation to the owner of the security chain.