Ripley thief plagued by cancer fears stole over £1,000 of goods

A desperate thief who has been undergoing tests for cancer stole over £1,000 worth of gifts for other people because she thought it was going to be her last Christmas.
Chesterfield magistrates' court.Chesterfield magistrates' court.
Chesterfield magistrates' court.

Chesterfield magistrates’ court heard on Wednesday, January 13, how Angela Lane, of Beighton Street, Ripley, tried to walk out of the Tesco store at Alfreton with a trolley filled with £1,083.42 worth of items before she was stopped by a security staff.

Prosecuting solicitor Rod Chapman said: “She came to the attention of staff as an alarm went off as she pushed her trolley towards the store exit.

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“She said she didn’t have the receipt because her daughter had taken it and she had gone across the road for a tan.”

However, staff carried out checks with the goods and the tills, according to Mr Chapman, and discovered none of the goods had been paid for and the police were alerted.

Lane told police she had only received £133 in benefits and had gone into the store as a genuine customer and loaded her trolley with items she wanted to buy for others even though she could not afford them.

Mr Chapman added: “She went as a bona fide customer to get bits for Christmas but when she was faced with the cornucopia of goods she began selecting items for relatives that she couldn’t afford.

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“This case was very sad because she believed she may be suffering from cancer and she feared this may have been her last Christmas.”

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Lane, who has previous convictions for theft, pleaded guilty to stealing the goods on December 18, last year.

Defence solicitor Paul McLeod said: “This is a sad case. She went to buy goods but things got the better of her because of the Christmas period.

“She was worrying that she may have cancer because she has had to undergo a biopsy and she has had cells removed from her throat for tests and fears she may have throat cancer.”

Magistrates fined Lane £80 and ordered her to pay £85 costs and a £20 victim surcharge.