A drug addict who pickpocketed a 96-year-old man for his pension was spared jail after a judge gave her another chance.
Heroin user Hannah Roberts – who has been committing crime over 20 years – spotted Walter Sutton withdrawing two week’s money while stood in the queue at Utting Avenue Post Office in Anfield.
The 40-year-old watched the pensioner put £570 in his pocket and leave the branch with his elderly wife at around 2.15pm on November 4 last year.
Liverpool Crown Court heard how Roberts, of Ayrshire Road, Anfield, followed the pair, crept up on her victim and took the cash out of his pocket.
However, members of the public saw and restrained her until police arrived.
Roberts admitted a single count of theft.
Liverpool Crown Court
She has multiple previous convictions for dishonesty and theft from a person, which have led to several spells in prison.
In October 2003 she was jailed for four years for attempted robbery, after entering a store in Wales, threatening a shopkeeper with a used syringe and scratching his arm with the needle.
In 2013 she received a suspended sentence after pretending to help an elderly woman onto a bus, only to walk off with her bag and coat.
Alaric Walmsley, defending, said the theft was an “impulsive act” and the money was recovered.
He accepted it was an “ugly incident” and said his client was ashamed.
Mr Walmsley said Roberts suffers from borderline personality disorder, anxiety and depression, but is seeking help from mental health services.
He said Roberts was working with the charity Addaction to treat her heroin addiction.
"You are someone who has shown over the years to have absolutely no respect for other people’s property"
Recorder Jeremy Lasker said Roberts had targeted Mr Sutton after realising he was “ripe for stealing from”.
He said: “You would have got away with just over £570 if it hadn’t been for passers-by.
“You do not appear to appreciate that at 96-years-old, Mr Sutton was someone who would likely be more susceptible to stress. You have put little or no attention to the effects of this offence upon him.
“You are someone who has shown over the years to have absolutely no respect for other people’s property and continued to act in a selfish manner.”
Recorder Lasker said Roberts managed to quit her drug habit and stay out of trouble between 2003 and 2011 before she relapsed.
He said she was now in a stable relationship, living at a settled address and tackling her addiction.
Recorder Lasker said: “Although you deserve a few months inside, it may not be in the public interest, if you could get off the drugs again.
“I have just been persuaded on balance to take a chance with you.”
He gave her a 12-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, plus a 12-month drug rehabilitation requirement, with regular drug testing.
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Source: http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/