A Milford Haven woman who stole goods from a supermarket has been fined in court.

Twenty-eight-year-old Natasha Marie Rachel Macdonald, of Willow End, pleaded guilty to a charge of stealing £90 worth of items from Asda in Pembroke Dock, when she appeared at Haverfordwest magistrates court on Tuesday.

Prosecutor Abdul Hussain told magistrates that on July 4, Mrs. Macdonald placed the items in her trolley, which included a bin and ironing board, and left the store without offering any payment.

“She was identified a few days later and interviewed by police officers on a voluntary basis,” he explained.

“The defendant accepted that she had made no attempt to pay for the goods, and had agreed to pay the money back to the store, but failed to do so,” continued Mr. Hussain.

Defence solicitor Mike Kelleher told the court that it was a shame his client hadn’t paid the store back the compensation, and that the case had come this far.

“Unfortunately her car broke down, and she simply didn’t have the money to pay back the store within 28 days,” he said.

Chief magistrate David Simpson told Mrs. Macdonald that she had been handed a ‘golden ticket’, but didn’t pay back the compensation and had chosen to have the case dealt with in court.

“You could have got away with a caution for this, so it’s not a very nice experience to be here in court, but we’re going to hand you another golden ticket, but giving you a 12-month conditional discharge for this offence,” he told the defendant.

As well as being given the conditional discharge, Mrs. Macdonald was also told that she would have to pay prosecution costs of £85, a £20 victim surcharge, along with the £90 compensation to the Asda store.