A woman who was found guilty of having stolen a €50 note from an unattended wallet was discharged by a magistrate's court upon condition of not committing another offence during the next six months.

The simple theft occurred inside a beauty parlour while a client left her handbag unattended, the court was told.

Confronted with CCTV footage, the accused did not deny having opened the wallet claiming, however, to have done so to check whether there was any personal document inside to reveal the identity of the bag's owner. The woman claimed to have thought that the bag might have been misplaced.

The court, presided by magistrate Aaron Bugeja, observed that although the footage did not capture the actual removal of the banknote by the accused, it did show the woman rummage in the wallet and then walk towards her own bag.

Moreover, the court noted that when the owner of the bag entered the room, the accused appeared absorbed in her mobile phone. The owner of the bag appeared to have a puzzled look on her face when she opened her wallet. She kept looking inside as though searching for something. Although the victim paid her bill she continued to look puzzled.

The court declared the accused guilty of the theft and conditionally discharged her for six months. The woman was also ordered to pay back the €50.