Woman stole £100 to go on drink binge

Lyndsey Morgan (31), of Totnes Close, pleaded guilty at Nottingham Magistrates’ Court to the theft of £100 from gas engineer Michael Matthews on Monday 20th January.

Rod Chapman (prosecuting) told the court that Mr Matthews was a gas engineer who was working at the home Miss Morgan shared with her mother, Janet.

“Lyndsey left the house and returned in an extremely drunken state,” said Mr Chapman.

“Mum Janet knew she had no money, so she enquired how she had been able to afford to go drinking.

“Mr Matthews then discovered that £100 was missing from his wallet, which was in the pocket of a jacket he had hung up.”

Mr Chapman said £41 of the money was recovered, but Morgan was arrested and interviewed by police. She declined to comment.

District Judge Leo Pyle sentenced Morgan to a community order of 12 months with the conditions that she be supervised by a probation officer and that she attend 10 sessions of an alcohol programme.

He told her: “This man had gone to your mother’s home to do some work. He didn’t need you preying on his wallet.”

Morgan was also ordered to pay £59 compensation to Mr Matthews, court costs of £85 and a victim surcharge of £60.

She pleads not guilty to three further charges of assaulting her mother, between Tuesday 1st October and Thursday 31st October last year, of threatening to set fire to her mother’s Christmas tree, between Sunday 1st December and Tuesday 31st December, and of threatening to set fire to her mother’s dining chairs on Friday 17th January.

A trial date to deal with these matters has been set for Thursday 15th May.