A WOMAN who returned to drug taking as a coping mechanism following two bereavements had been through a horrible time, a court heard.

Jenna Davies, 33, started shoplifting to get money for drugs.

Davies, of Glaslyn, Plas Madoc, Acrefair, admitted three shoplifting charges and failing to answer court bail on an earlier occasion.

She had also been convicted in her absence of an earlier shoplifting offence.

Stephen Edwards, defending, said there had been issues in Davies' life in recent times.

She had been doing well on a methadone prescription which allowed her to live a normal life and be a good mother to her 13-year-old daughter.

However there had been two tragedies in her life. Her mother died suddenly and her partner of 15 years passed away.

Davies lost her accommodation and when she became homeless she lost her methadone prescription. She then relapsed to illicit street drugs.

But following intervention by the drugs services and social services she now had stable accommodation and she was being helped with a 40mls methadone prescription and was getting her life back on track.

Probation officer Pamela Roberts said Davies had been through a horrible time and the loss of two people close to her led her drug use to escalate.

She had been homeless at one stage but she was now working with the drugs services.

District judge Gwyn Jones, sitting at North East Wales Magistrates Court at Mold, said in the circumstances he would place her on a community order with 20 days rehabilitation.

She was ordered to pay costs of £200 with £106 compensation and a £85 surcharge.

He warned that if she did not work with probation then she would be back in court and the ultimate sanction was custody.

Davies admitted stealing goods worth £65 from the Co-op in Rhostyllen and two incidents of theft valued at £70 from the Nisa store in Ruabon, all last month.

She admitted failing to answer her bail in January when she was convicted in her absence of stealing property valued at £106 from B&M Bargains in Wrexham.