Tearful trial

Thieving mom goes to prison for six months

The defendant confessed fully in court and burst into tears.(Bild: Dostal Harald, Krone KREATIV)

18 months in prison, six of them unconditional: this is the sentence for a 42-year-old woman who burst into tears in court. The mother of five tried to make a living by breaking and entering and stealing. However, this was not the first time she had stood before the judge.

"I'm really sorry for what I did. I was ashamed to ask my eldest son for help again. I didn't know how I was going to pay for everything." - In tears, a mother of five (42) - three of her children are still minors - confessed to several burglaries and thefts. According to her own statement, the woman from Mühlviertel has no assets, but is around 30,000 euros in debt.

Already six previous convictions
The woman was, of course, no stranger to the justice system. The defendant already had six previous convictions, four of which were relevant. It was only on September 25 last year that she was sentenced to 18 months conditional imprisonment for 153 property offenses by the St. Pölten Regional Court. However, the mother has apparently learned nothing from her mistake; she was caught red-handed on December 2 and has been in custody ever since, with one brief exception.

At the trial in Linz, the judge was "once again lenient", but strongly reassured the thief. The final verdict: 18 months in prison, six months of which were unconditional.