A female drug addict has been jailed after stealing an 86-year-old widow’s purse along with a picture of her late husband.
Kelly Whyte, a prisoner at Cornton Vale, targeted a number of vulnerable pensioners during a series of robberies.
She admitted to five counts of theft at Dundee Sheriff Court on Tuesday.
The 36-year-old entered the homes of both pensioners she knew and elderly strangers.
During one theft, an 86-year-old woman was robbed of her purse which included, among other things, a picture of her late husband.
To date the picture has not been located.
Another 79-year-old man was robbed of £87 and a packet of cigarettes after offering Whyte a cup of tea.
According to Whyte’s lawyer Kris Gilmartin, the 36-year-old has a long-standing problem with drug addiction.
Mr Gilmartin said his client has been suffering from “guilt and remorse” and claimed that she “does not recognise the person who carried out the offences”.
He added: “She is someone who has been blighted by drug addiction for a number of years.
“She is appalled at the charges against her.
“The outlook for Ms White is relatively positive, but what she is left with is guilt and remorse.
“It is a punishment in itself to hear these statements.
“She knows that she is going to prison.”
The case called before Sheriff Alastair Brown who sentenced Whyte to four and a half years in prison.
He said: “In some cases you went into their homes.
“All you were interested in doing was stealing whatever you could, however you could.”
