A magistrate warned a drug addict she had narrowly avoided prison after she admitted stealing up to €50,000 in gold, silverware and cash from her parents’ home.

“This is your very last chance. One more slip-up and you will be locked away for a very long time,” Magistrate Carol Peralta told Sonia Bajada, 41.

Ms Bajada, who appeared before a different magistrate just a few minutes before who was told she had tested positive for cocaine and heroin, was not only a drug addict but also a kleptomaniac.

“She would take whatever she finds just to sustain her drug habit. This woman needs help,” said defence lawyer Michael Sciriha.

But Magistrate Peralta retorted that the court had given her probably too many chances. “How can I trust you?” he asked her.

Ms Bajada was sleeping over at her parents’ house in Swatar on October 31. Her mother told police she heard a noise at around 5.30am but thought it was the cat. When she got up later in the morning, her daughter was gone, as were her silver, gold and cash.

The parents told investigators they suspected their daughter was responsible for the theft, although she denied her involvement before pleading guilty.

Police inspector Jason Francis Sultana said many of the items have not been recovered.

The woman’s father, who was present in the courtroom, said that although he forgives his daughter, she clearly needed help.

Magistrate Peralta sentenced her to 150 hours of community work and placed her under a three-year treatment order, with psychiatric supervision. He also ordered a progress report to be given to him every four months.

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