Leiam Mitchell Clarke, 23, who is in custody, pleaded guilty to three counts of possessing a knife in public, possessing a laser pointer in public and possessing a prohibited drug.

He pleaded not guilty to possessing an offensive implement in public.

Court papers said the charges stem from incidents between April to October this year.

Police said on April 4, Clarke was a passenger in a Holden Commodore pulled over on Kalandar Street, Nowra, around 2.35pm for a random breath test.

Identified as having an “extensive criminal history” Clarke was asked if he had anything he wanted to declare to police at which he allegedly told officers he had a knife in the waistband of his shorts, and attempted to take out a 20cm silver folding knife with a five centimetre serrated edged.

He was caught again by police around 5pm on April 13 while riding a pushbike without a helmet in Wallace Street, Nowra.

Officers found a 5cm pocket knife in the handlebars of the bike, as well as an ice pipe and 1.2 grams of a crystal substance in his underpants, which was later found to be dimethyl sulfone, a non prohibited substance.

He was caught again on June 18, this time at Nowra Courthouse, after a metal detector located a laser pointer, a fold-out knife and a multi-tool in a backpack in his possession.

Clarke was arrested on October 5 for an outstanding warrant and was found to be in possession of a number of strips (one gram) of buprenorphine, an opioid used to treat addiction, acute and chronic pain.

Court papers said he was also allegedly caught with a 40cm metal pipe with a folding handle on the corner of Kameruka Crescent and Clipper Road around 11am on August 11.

However, he has pleaded not guilty of possessing an offensive implement in public.

In court papers police said Clarke had an extensive criminal history of serious and violent offences and had been caught with a knife in a public place on eight occasions.

The matters are set down for sentencing on April 16, 2019.

Read more: Crime/Court