A 35-YEAR-old who pocketed more than £1,000 by cheating on a motorway services arcade machine has appeared in court.

Wayne O'Malley, of Greenings Court, appeared in Liverpool Crown Court on Thursday after using a refill key to 'take advantage of the system' when playing on the Luck O' the Irish slot machine.

The offences took place more than two years ago in July 2018 at the Moto Donington Park services in Derby and the Moto Ferrybridge services in Knottingley.

It was heard how O'Malley was seen on CCTV using a refill key, a device which manipulates a slot machine game to reach a stage where money is more likely to be won.

The prosecution added that on one occasion, the machine ejected 41 notes, but it was not certain if these were £10 or £20.

On another, the court was told O'Malley walked away with £950.

Simeon Evans, defending, said O'Malley should be given full credit for his guilty plea.

He stressed that the refill key only increases your changes and does not provide the user with certainty that they will win.

Sentencing, Recorder Simon Parrington, said: "You pleaded guilty to two offences of what amounts to cheating.

"This is a serious matter and one which I say crosses the custody threshold.

"You clearly need to be deterred from doing this in the future."

O'Malley was handed a six-month sentence suspended for two years.