A SERIAL shoplifter caught stealing hundreds of pounds worth of perfume and aftershave while the subject of a suspended prison sentence has walked free from court.
Leigh Horner was told by a judge at Teesside Crown Court that she was being spared jail because of her recent progress, but the 34-year-old was warned it was her last chance.
The court heard yesterday that Horner, of Dobson Terrace, Redcar, has 71 offences on her record stretching back 14 years - including 40 for thefts from shops.
On February 22, she was caught fleeing from Boots at Teesside Park, near Stockton, with bottles of scent worth more than £450.
Duncan McReddie, mitigating, said Horner had been doing well under probation supervision before this "blip".
He said she had managed to get back on track recently and urged the court not to jail her.
Horner was given an 18-week prison sentence, suspended for 18 months after she admitted theft, and an eight week electronic-tag curfew for breaching the earlier sentence.
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