A DRUG addict kidnapped a toddler because her father owed him cash, a court heard.

Michael John Harris, 40, from Southend, pointed a gun at the dad and told him to hand over his 22-month-old daughter or he would soon "see her body parts on the pavement", a court heard.

The threat came after Harris arranged a meeting with the father, who cannot be named for legal reasons, in Battersea, South London, on August, 2005.

Kingston Crown Court heard how the dad, who left his daughter, is believed to have owed Harris a large sum of money, probably for drugs.

Harris and co-defendant Joanne Parker, 47, then drove the child to Southend where he was living at the time.

Later the same day, the youngster was handed over to authorities in Southend. She was uninjured apart from a few scratches.

Harris - who is serving a four-year sentence for another crime - was arrested shortly afterwards and police seized about £1,000.

In mitigation Michael Skelley said Harris was now a "different character" from how he was in 2005.

He said: "During his custody he has considered his issues with drugs and is equipped to integrate himself back into society."

Yet Judge Tilling told Harris: "You took advantage of the situation to force the baby's father to pay you."

Harris pleaded guilty to kidnap.

He was sentenced to three years, which will run consecutively to the one he is currently serving.

He is due to be released next July.

Parker was handed a 50-week prison sentence, suspended for two years.