A 34-year-old woman was today jailed four years and had her driving licence suspended for 12 months after she was found guilty of stealing handbags from elderly women.

Alexia Margo Calleja, 35, last year pleaded not guilty to a string of at least 20 thefts of bags from churches between November 2011 and February 2012.

This morning she was found guilty of committing eight of the thefts and of using a stolen credit card to withdraw €300.

Her partner in crime, Baldassare Perlotti, 42, was jailed two years after he was found guilty of committing three of the thefts.

The couple had been caught red-handed by an off duty policeman.

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