AN Allansford woman who has been in court six times for dishonesty offences has received a suspended jail sentence after pleading guilty to stealing nail polish.
Katharine Dix, 40, pleaded guilty in the Warrnambool Magistrates Court yesterday to possessing $12,500 of goods suspected of being the proceeds of crime and two counts of theft.
She was sentenced to serve two months' imprisonment but had the term suspended for two years.
Towards the end of last year and during the first half of January, the unemployed Dix went to a hairdressing salon on Lava Street, where she took shellac nail polish and paid for other items.
The offending was captured on security camera footage.
Police searched Dix's home and found beauty products, candles and handbags valued at many thousands of dollars.
Dix told police she had a problem and wanted the nail polish colours, which she stole. She made an unusual statement to a shop attendant, which sparked a stocktake that uncovered the missing stock.
Police previously alleged there had been hundreds of items seized at Dix's home and the case was described as incredibly complex.
Yesterday, Dix was found unsuitable for a community corrections order and a psychological report outlined her issues.
Magistrate Ron Saines said a term of imprisonment was appropriate as it was the sixth time Dix had been in court for crimes of dishonesty. She has also been in court for other offences.
The magistrate said Dix had continued to collect cosmetics, despite not being able to afford to do so, by engaging in crime.
Mr Saines warned Dix that any further offending could expect to end in an immediate jail sentence.
