A MAN who ‘pilfered’ the account of a woman after stealing her debit card in a burglary has been jailed.

Perry Stanley, of Meadway in Widnes, was sentenced in Warrington Magistrates Court, after taking her handbag from a property in on Park Road in Great Sankey

He then went on a spending spree in Warrington and Widnes totalling almost £90 before the card was declined.

Michael Cain, prosecuting, told the court that the victim returned home from work on February 12 and left her handbag in the porch, which contained her bank card but no money.

The external door was left unlocked; however the bag was out of sight from the windows and could only have been found by entering the porch.

At approximately 9pm the same evening, the victim was contacted by her bank who revealed that nine transactions had been made on her card which she was unaware of.

Stanley was identified using the card on CCTV, spending a total of £89.98, and pleaded guilty to fraud but not guilty to burglary.

He was subsequently found guilty by trial, with the court hearing that the defendant had 11 previous convictions from 22 offence.

Defence solicitor James Bagby told the court that the circumstances leading up to the offence were different to those Stanley was currently experiencing.

He had been ‘thrown out’ of the family home, was described as ‘immature’, and had a gambling addiction.

Stanley had since returned to family home on the condition that his mother had control of his finances and he address his problems.

Mr Bagby added: “There was no confrontation during the opportunistic burglary, he did not enter the property as a whole and admitted the fraud at the first opportunity.”

Sentencing, district judge Bridget Knight, said: “Your long-suffering, clearly supportive parents are still suffering due to your behaviour.

“Within two hours of stealing the card in a gross intrusion of the sanctity of her home, you had pilfered her account with eight transactions before you were stopped.

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“You already have had two suspended sentences and there comes a point when your time has run out.”

Stanley was sentenced to 36 weeks immediate imprisonment, of which he will serve half, and issued with court costs of £555.