Ian William Kelly, 47, was caught hiding in a hedge in Forrest with a backpack full of stolen jewellery and other items in April.

The ACT Magistrates Court heard the items had been taken from homes at Manuka and Forrest earlier that day.

Kelly told police that he had been approached by two men, whom he knew only as "Michael" and "Gavin", who planned to commit a number of burglaries for money and asked him to help.

He said the two men asked him to hold the backpack full of stolen items and ran away when police approached, leaving him with the bag.

Kelly pleaded guilty to 11 charges including burglary, theft, drug possession and possessing stolen property.

The court heard Kelly had an unenviable criminal history that stretched for 12 pages and included about 70 convictions for burglary and 19 convictions for possessing stolen property.

Before the April burglaries, Kelly had also stolen a Royal Albert cutlery set worth nearly $1000 from the Myer department store in Civic.

Kelly's lawyer told the court that his client had a disadvantaged start in life through no fault of his own and had fallen into drug use at a young age.

He said Kelly wanted to put his life of crime behind him and wanted to focus on rebuilding his health and relationships with his family and children.

But the prosecution argued Kelly's crimes were premeditated and he had a concentrated pattern of offending.

His previous history showed he could relapse into drug use and crime once released from jail and the community deserved protection from his offending.

Magistrate Peter Morrison sentenced Kelly to a total of 35 months in jail and ordered him to repay $999 to Myer.

With time already served, Kelly will be eligible for parole in 2014.