A shoplifter has claimed to have been “let down by the system” after being caught stealing again.

Lucille McKerrow, 27, was brought before Bolton Crown Court this week after admitting to breaching court orders banning her from certain shops and to further counts of shoplifting.

She had committed both the thefts and the breaches in April last year, according to prosecutor Emma Clarke.

Judge Timothy Clayson said: “It’s part of a pattern of behaviour, isn’t it?

“There’s nothing particularly remarkable about it except that she shouldn’t be going into Bolton town centre, and she shouldn’t be stealing things.”

The Bolton News: The case was heard at Bolton Crown CourtThe case was heard at Bolton Crown Court (Image: Newsquest)

Ms Clarke told the court how McKerrow, of no fixed address, had been given a two-year court order banning her from various shops in Bolton town centre on April 4 last year.

But she had breached that order just days later by going into a town centre branch of Marks and Spencer on April 13, 2022.

McKerrow, who appeared before the court via a video link from prison, also stole from shops again five days later on April 18.

She pleaded guilty to both shoplifting and breaching a court order when brought before the magistrates court and has been remanded in prison since then.

Paul Becker, defending, argued that McKerrow deserved credit for having admitted her crimes and said she had been left “shoplifting to survive” after a previous release from prison.

He told the court that the defendant had been left with no home to go to after her release, with no one to support her and an addiction to Class A drugs to contend with.

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Mr Becker said: “She’s sorry for what she’s done but she feels very let down by the system.”

He added: “If she could stop stealing then she would stop appearing in court, so it’s a Catch-22 situation really.”

But Mr Becker argued that given the proper support and opportunities, McKerrow could yet prove able to turn her life around and avoid further crimes.

He said: “She would like the chance to break the cycle.”

Judge Clayson agreed to delay sentencing McKerrow until a pre-sentence report could be completed about her.