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Thief who targeted old and vulnerable spared jail after giving birth

A 'wicked' woman who preyed on the old and vulnerable has been saved from a long prison sentence by her baby daughter.

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The child was born to Patricia McGoldrick on February12 while the prolific thief was behind bars waiting for her case to come to court.

The 23-year-old stole a total of £75 from a 46-year-old man with mental health issues after taking cash from him on three separate occasions between May and November last year after being freed from a jail term imposed for a similar crime, Wolverhampton Crown Court was told.

She managed to force her way into his Wolverhampton home because he was unwilling to close the front door on an obviously pregnant woman and took £5, said Mr Edward Soulsby, prosecuting.

On another occasion she grabbed £40 that the victim had just withdrawn from a cash machine and pocketed a further £30 on another visit to his flat, the court heard.

McGoldrick, who has 22 previous convictions for 47 offences, was returned to prison after her arrest on November 11 because the latest crimes broke the terms of her earlier release and she must stay behind bars until May 17.

Mr Mukhtar Ubhi, defending, said: "She has been in the depths of drugs and prostitution but the birth of her child in prison was such an emotional wake-up call that the remorse she has expressed is probably genuine.

"This little girl is the reason she sees light at the end of the tunnel for the first time in her life and she is trying to form a proper relationship with her daughter."

The child has been taken from McGoldrick but is being brought back to her by social workers once a week to give a chance for the mother and baby bond to develop, it was said.

The defendant, from Star Street, Bradmore, Wolverhampton, pleaded guilty to two burglaries and a theft and was given a four-month jail sentence meaning she will be scheduled to be set free on May 31 - two weeks after her current release date.

Recorder Anthony Lowe told her: "There is a pattern to your offending of deliberately targeting vulnerable people . These are wicked offences but the only ray of light in your case is the birth of your daughter.

"The authorities are considering rehabilitating the child to you and are arranging contact whilst you are in prison pending a decision on any future care plan. The clock is already ticking against you in this. You deserve a 10-month sentence meaning your daughter would be eight months of age on release and the prospect of rehabilitation would become a near inpossibility.

"By reducing the term there is a realistic opportunity for the responsibility of looking after your daughter to correct your serious offending. I hope this gesture will not go unrewarded and you become a good mother in every sense of the words."

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