A conwoman duped Walsall businesses out of cash by telling them she was running a charity race, a court heard.
Adele Ford visited five firms and told staff from each she was running a 10k fun run in aid of the Bobby Moore charity, which raises money for people suffering from cancer.
The 21-year-old even went as far to make some sponsor forms, Walsall Magistrates Court heard.
She netted £85 from HH Plastics, Sidcup and Crane UK during the scam on June 5.
But she was found out when a boss at Kirkpatrick Ltd decided to log on to the website contained on her forms.
He discovered there was no such race, which she said would take place at Weston Park in Staffordshire, and called the police.
Prosecuting, Miss Siobhan Wilkins told the court yesterday that Ford, of Penn Road, Wolverhampton, had a history of similar offences.
“The boss at Kirkpatrick Ltd said he would log on to the website before handing over the £30 and she said she would come back. He logged onto the internet and found there was no such race,” she said.
Ford was arrested two weeks later, added Miss Wilkins, and that she had told police the money was used to clear a previous drug debt.
Ford admitted theft. Mr Robert Skinner, defending, told the court that Ford had cleaned up her act and was now drug-free.
Magistrates gave her an 18-month community order, meaning she will be supervised for parts of the day.
She was ordered to pay back the money she had stolen and take part in a drugs rehabilitation programme.
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