A PROLIFIC Inverclyde thief who committed a litany of shoplifting offences totalling nearly £2,000 across SIXTEEN separate criminal complaints has been locked up for more than two years.

Ann Parker — who also threatened a store worker and challenged her to fight — has been sentenced to a total of 872 days imprisonment.

She began sobbing in the dock of Greenock Sheriff Court as lawman James Varney told her there was no alternative to jail due to the 'sheer number' of her crimes.

Parker, 40, helped herself to around £1,800 worth of goods — including booze, fragrances, candles and meat — between February 2021 and November last year.

She targeted stores such as Tesco, Iceland and the Co-op in both Greenock and Port Glasgow — stealing more than £150 worth of alcohol and food in one instance.

On another occasion Parker — who spent her 40th birthday remanded in custody awaiting sentence — stole candles valued at £142.

Her lawyer, Derek Buchanan, told the court: "She candidly accepts that spending her 40th birthday on remand in prison was not the best of venues for such an occasion.

"Miss Parker also accepts that she is the author of her own misfortune.

"Her 40th birthday was not the first significant event missed because of her offending behaviour.

"She was unable to attend her father's funeral and that is a source of very considerable regret for her, and she feels embarrassment and shame about that."

Mr Buchanan added: "Regrettably, she has not been able to deal with the underlying difficulties that she has.

"She has, however, reached a stage in her life, having turned 40 in custody, where she has paused to give greater through than previously as to where she is going in life."

Parker also stole a man's wallet containing cards and £80 in cash.

She used a stolen debit card to obtain £84 worth of goods by fraud.

Parker also breached a number of bail orders.

Sheriff Varney remarked that there were 16 complaints before the court, some with multiple charges, which could attract sentences of a year in each instance.

The sheriff told Parker: "I have considered the seriousness of the various offences and the aggravating factors.

"The sheer number of complaints leads me to the conclusion that there is no alternative to a period of custody.

"There are a significant number of matters which date back a significant period of time, coupled with a record which does you no credit."