Woman tried to steal cheque from boss
A WOMAN who tried to steal €500 from her employer by lodging a forged cheque had gone "off the rails" after her mother's death, a court heard.
Rebecca Gardiner (27) had "hit the bottle" at the time of the offence.
Gardiner, of Clonliffe Road, Dublin 3 pleaded guilty to attempted theft at Old Lucan Road, Chapelizod between October 20 and 30, 2013.
Judge Michael Walsh struck the charge out after she made a €300 charity donation.
Dublin District Court heard the defendant took a blank cheque from her employer who lived at the same address as her at the time.
blameless
She made the cheque out for €500, forged a signature on it and tried to lodge it at the AIB bank, Westmoreland Street but was unsuccessful.
The cheque was returned to the victim and the accused was co-operative with the gardai.
Defence Solicitor Peter Keatings said the incident had been "one blip in an otherwise blameless life".
The defendant had "hit the bottle in a big way" after the death of her mother.
"Nothing like this has ever happened to her before and she feels terrible about it," Mr Keatings said.
She had now changed her life and taken up playing tag rugby.