A WOMAN who became addicted to drugs when she was 14 has been jailed for nine months for a string of shoplifting and theft offences.

Kelly Goatcher, now aged 24, sobbed in Worcester Magistrates Court as she pleaded guilty to six charges against her.

Magistrates were told Goatcher, of Wyld’s Lane, Worcester, had stolen clothing worth £324 from Exchange and Smart on Thursday, November 5, and clothing worth £36 from Mothercare on Saturday, October 24.

They were also told she had stolen a handbag and contents, worth £610, from a woman in a city pub on Saturday, September 26.Goatcher also admitted stealing boy’s jeans worth £52.52 from Petit Petite and items from Rhubarb on Thursday, October 8, and items from Claire’s Accessories worth £27.50 on Thursday, October 15.

Magistrates were also told about three other thefts for which she had previously been given a deferred sentence.

Those were the theft of fragrance worth £46, cakes worth 35p and four legs of lamb worth £35.90.

Mark Sheward, defending, said: “She is in the grip of a dreadful heroin addiction.

“She was introduced to it by a much older boyfriend 10 years ago when she was aged 14.”

Magistrates jailed Goatcher for a total of 36 weeks, which included three weeks each for the meat theft, fragrance theft, and theft of goods from Claire’s Accessories and Rhubarb.

She was given five weeks for stealing clothes from Petit Petite, 12 weeks for the handbag theft, four weeks for the theft from Mothercare and six weeks for the theft from Exchange and Smart.

Your Worcester News was the only member of the media at this hearing