An elderly Romanian woman was jailed for a month after she admitted to shoplifting.  Tita Budescu, 79, was charged with stealing two T-shirts from the Diesel outlet in Sliema on Monday afternoon.

Magistrate Consuelo Scerri Herrera heard how the woman, who has no money to sustain herself, came to Malta to see her grandson but wanted to return to her home country. The court heard how the grandson had paid for the stolen items – worth around €28 – and had offered to buy her air ticket to Romania.

The Magistrate said she was jailing the woman because she did not want to see her begging on the streets. “If she does not have means to sustain herself she can wait in jail until the ticket is purchased and then she can return," the magistrate said. "If she was capable of stealing, she should be capable of going to jail."

Defence lawyer Abigal Bugeja asked the court to show clemency, with the Magistrate jailing the woman for one month, which is the minimum.  Police Inspector Neville Mercieca prosecuted.