Grief sparks supermarket theft

PAULA HULBURT paula@topsouthmedia.co.nz

A woman who discovered her mother dead at the home they shared, was so stricken by grief she stole items from a Blenheim supermarket.

Jennifer Ward pled guilty to one charge of theft under $500 at Blenheim District Court on Monday. She was caught by staff at Countdown supermarket in Redwoodtown in April after taking items from the store’s health and beauty aisle.

The summary of facts revealed how Ward had stolen a bottle of baby oil, two tubes of Voltaren pain relief gel, a Maybelline brand concealer, and an eyebrow pencil. Staff had followed her to the frozen goods aisle where she was seen concealing an apple pie beneath her coat. She told staff she was going out to the car to get some money and handed over the pie and the pain relief gel. The other items were not recovered.

Appearing before Judge Stephen O’Driscoll, Ward stood silently in the dock, supported by her great aunt sitting in the public gallery. Her lawyer told the court her client was “not in a good head space” when the offending happened.

“She was dealing with her mother’s death and had personal issues to do with having found her mother deceased two weeks previously. “She’s on the Methadone programme and says she can’t think clearly. She is embarrassed and remorseful.”

Judge O’Driscoll convicted Ward and told her to bring a receipt to court on 28 August 2023 to prove she had paid reparation.

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