A York woman who stole an acquaintance's purse while visiting her home has been jailed for six months.

Donna Marie Bycroft, 19, called round at Jennifer Johnstone's house in Clifton, York, and offered to sell her some underwear, said Diane Campbell, prosecuting.

When Ms Johnstone said no, Bycroft asked for a drink of water and then a cigarette.

After the teenager left, the Clifton woman discovered her purse with £110 cash, bank cards and a house key, was missing.

The women knew each other.

The 19-year-old went on the run twice while waiting for her case to be heard, but was arrested on a crown court bench warrant.

Bycroft, who had no fixed address when arrested for the offence in March, but who comes from York, pleaded guilty to theft and two non-appearances at court.

"This was a mean and nasty offence," Recorder Peter Collier QC told her at York Crown Court.

"Having failed to persuade her (Ms Johnstone) to buy anything from you, you then asked her for water and when she went to get it, you stole her purse."

He jailed her for six months for theft with concurrent one-month sentences for the non-appearances at court.

For her, Nicholas Wray said she was a heroin addict on a £200 a day habit at the time of the offence.

She had since reduced it down to £30 a day.

It had been an opportunistic theft and she had not deliberately sent the victim out of the room to get water so she could steal her purse.