A WOMAN who had misplaced her bank card at Chester's Greyhound Retail Park later discovered someone had used it at three stores.

Purchases of cigarettes, alcohol and groceries totalling £168.56 were made at Asda and Tesco, and an attempted purchase made at B&M Bargains.

The woman who had used the car fraudulently was Samantha Hall, 34, who appeared at Chester Magistrates Court on Monday, February 15 to plead guilty to stealing a purse and its contents, fraudulently using that bank card at Asda and Tesco on the retail park, and attempting to use the same card at B&M Bargains.

Prosecuting, Simon Green said as well as the bank card, complainant Yetunde Olaniyi had also lost her driving licence, worth £20.

The bank had been in contact and she had been reimbursed for the fraud.

CCTV footage had shown Hall using the card at the three stores on December 10, 2020.

When caught, she replied: "Yeah, it was me".

Defending herself, Hall said she was homeless at the time and "it was a stupid thing to do", and wanted to apologise for her actions.

"I don't get myself into trouble...I used it and shouldn't have."

A probation report heard Hall was on an existing 18-month community order for a previous offence, and the compliance was described as "satisfactory", taking into account Hall's personal circumstances.

She was currently staying at the Mulberry Centre on Sealand Road and was getting treatment for her drug addiction, and had experienced significant trauma over the years.

Magistrates adjourned the case for a pre-sentence report to be obtained. Hall is to appear at Chester Magistrates Court next month to be sentenced.