Women come clean on shoplifting

Two women have turned themselves in for shoplifting offenses committed four years ago.

Two ex-Masterton women now living in Australia appealed to "the mercy of the court" yesterday after turning themselves in for a burglary and shoplifting committed in Masterton four years ago.

Hayley Kara Karaitiana, 30 and Kelly Ruth Edmonds, 35, pleaded guilty in Masterton District Court to joint charges of burglary and shoplifting, while Karaitiana had two further counts of shoplifting items worth more than $1000.

The offences had occurred in early 2011, when both women were back in Masterton for a funeral for a relative of Karaitiana's.

Before they could be charged by police, however, the women had returned to Australia.

Karaitiana's lawyer, Susie Barnes, said the two women are now in New Zealand for a two-week holiday over Christmas.

They arrived in New Zealand on December 15, and on December 18, "took themselves to Masterton Police Station", Ms Barnes said.

"They are throwing themselves on the mercy of the court, their passports have been confiscated."

Ms Barnes said the shoplifting was "not sophisticated" and the women had been caught at the scene and all items recovered.

She had provided medical certificates outlining reasons the women needed to return to Australia shortly.

Edmonds' lawyer, Ian Hard, said the women had not been stopped at the airport when they arrived in New Zealand.

"They could have got away with it; they could have had Christmas here (and returned)."

Mr Hard said Karaitiana needed to return to Australia for radiation therapy, and Edmonds was her "fulltime caregiver".

The burglary was "not of the most serious kind", Mr Hard said, as the victims were known to the burglars, and it "might have been said to have been done out of spite".

Both lawyers asked Judge Arthur Tompkins to impose a fine, rather than a custodial or community work sentence, so the women could return to Australia.

Judge Tompkins said a warrant had been issued for the women's arrest in 2011, after they could not be served with a summons to appear in court.

He said the women were "intending to run to Australia shortly", having "family responsibility to their children", and the need for medical treatment.

The judge described the shoplifting as inept.

For the burglary, both women were fined $500 and ordered to pay $750 in emotional harm - and on the shoplifting charges were convicted and discharged.

The fines were ordered to be paid immediately, and on payment, the women's passports would be returned.