Woman charged over distraction burglaries was already on bail, court told

A woman who has been charged with a spate of distraction burglaries where pensioners were targeted is already on bail for similar offences, a court heard on Monday.
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At Newry Magistrates’ Court, 43-year-old Kathleen Alice Connors was accused of two counts of burglary, an attempted burglary and numerous motoring offences, all alleged to have occurred in the last week of April.

Connors, who stood in the dock flanked by police officers, confirmed she was aware of the charges while Detective Constable McCartan said she believed she could connect the alleged burglar to the charges, adding that she was objecting to bail amid fears that Connors would reoffend.

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She described to the court how one incident happened in a fold housing development while, in another, a child pinned an elderly man’s arms to his side while Connors allegedly stole his wallet.

The victims of the burglaries – which took place in Belleeks, Newtownhamilton and Crossmaglen – are aged 83, 85 and 87.

During police searches of Connors and her caravan, police seized a total of £440 in cash.

When she was arrested, Connors admitted to driving with neither a licence, insurance nor MOT.

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Outlining her objections to bail, DC McCartan said that as well as the earlier allegations and the fresh charges, Connors had previous convictions for burglary.

Police also want to question her about other matters, giving rise to fears that if she was released she might flee, commit further offences or intimidate her alleged victims given their vulnerability, the detective said.

Refusing to release Connors for all those reasons, District Judge Greg McCourt remanded her into custody to appear again on May 18 via videolink.

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