An under-the-influence car thief smashed into a tree after attempting to make her getaway with a bizarre haul of seemingly random items including a Henry vacuum cleaner and a single Nike trainer.
Meghann Beckers was seen staggering away from the wrecked Vauxhall Vectra clutching a designer handbag and wearing a full-length khaki puffer jacket she had just lifted from a nearby property in Perth.
Perth Sheriff Court heard the 36-year-old also stole a Henry vacuum cleaner, a bottle of Prosecco, a second Jasper Conrad handbag and a single Nike Air Max shoe.
The serial shoplifter pled guilty to stealing from a house in the city’s North Muirton area on New Year’s Day.
She further admitted driving while unfit through drink and drugs.
The court heard Beckers is due for early release for a previous conviction as part of the Scottish Government’s plan to ease overcrowding in prisons.
Car parked on pavement
Prosecutors said the owner of the Vauxhall Astra parked up outside her Bute Drive home at around 4.20pm.
Some four hours later, residents a short distance away in Gowans Terrace were alerted to an unusual noise outside.
They looked out and saw the headlights of a car, stopped on a footpath.
The vehicle appeared to have collided with a tree, the fiscal depute said.
One witness went to investigate and saw Beckers inside the car, holding a handbag.
She then got out the driver’s side, before leaning over to rummage about inside.
As she staggered away towards Kite’s Way, the witness asked for keys and suggested he would move the car for her.
Beckers, slurring her words, told him her dad was going to come and pick it up.
She then took the keys out of the handbag and threw them onto the street.
Officers arrived on the scene and approached Beckers, who was wearing the stolen puffer jacket.
The fiscal depute said: “Her demeanour immediately gave cause for concern. She didn’t appear to be fit for driving.
“She was very slow and appeared to be drowsy, with her eyes slightly closed.
“Her speech was slurred and she was scratching at her face.”
Beckers failed a breathalyser test.
She told cops she hadn’t had a drink in the last 20 minutes.
Missing items
Around the same time, the car’s owner noticed the vehicle was no longer parked outside.
She saw that her keys were missing, along with a 20 pack of Lambert and Butler from the kitchen counter.
A bottle of Prosecco had also vanished from a wine rack.
The following day, she noticed that her back door was unlocked.
Her long puffer jacket was also no longer in the house.
And it was later established that two Jasper Conrad handbags and a Nike trainer had also disappeared, along with her blue Henry vacuum cleaner.
The Henry was found by police at Beckers’ flat.
Beckers, of Stronsay Court, Perth, also pled guilty to shoplifting more than £200 worth of toiletries and perfumes from High Street stores Boots and Savers on February 4 2022.
She also took £100 worth of alcohol from The Bothy restaurant on May 4 2022.
Sentencing delayed
Solicitor Paul Ralph, defending, said his client was serving a short sentence and was due to be released “four or five days” earlier than scheduled.
He said: “She has used the sentence particularly well and has had jobs in prison.
“She is putting plans in place for when she gets out.
“She is showing a more positive side and is looking forward.”
Sheriff Morag Fraser proposed 200 hours of unpaid work and a three-month Restriction of Liberty curfew.
However, Beckers will be return to court for sentence next week, once she has been released.
She has been disqualified from driving in the interim.
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