Repeat offender teenage mum jailed for stealing from Lidl
A teenage mum with multiple previous theft convictions has been jailed for seven months after stealing over €570 worth of groceries from a Lidl store in south Dublin.
Casandra Lingurar, with an address at Virginia Hall, Belgard Square West, Tallaght, Dublin 24, pleaded guilty at Tallaght District Court to a charge of theft under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice (Theft and Fraud Offences) Act 2001.
The offence occurred on October 6, 2024, at Lidl on Nutgrove Avenue, Rathfarnham.
Garda Fergal Dempsey told the court that Lingurar entered the store at 4.50pm with an empty trolley, which she filled with groceries worth €577.07.
At around 5.03pm, she was seen standing in the entrance doorway to keep it open before attempting to push the trolley out. She was immediately apprehended by store security, and gardaí arrived shortly after. The court heard all items were groceries.
The court previously heard that Lingurar is a Romanian national who has lived in Ireland for five years and is a single mother of two. The defendant, who is now aged 19 and was 18 at the time of the offence, has nine previous convictions – seven of which are for theft.
On May 27 last, she was given a three-month suspended sentence by the same court for stealing clothing and jewellery from outlets in The Square Shopping Centre, three months before the current offence.
Defence solicitor Mr Kevin Tunney said Ms Lingurar is a single parent with two children and described her as vulnerable, noting there has been “a lot of recent matters” before the court involving theft and robbery.
He said she had been very difficult to engage with and added: “There is obviously something in the background that she hasn’t discussed with me.”
Gardaí disputed her claims that she was homeless. The court also heard that Ms Lingurar has a history of failing to appear in court, with six bench warrants previously issued.
Mr Tunney requested a probation report, but Judge Patricia McNamara refused, saying: “I gave her one last time, it seems.”
The judge said she would take the early guilty plea into account, but due to the number and nature of previous convictions, she convicted Lingurar and sentenced her to seven months in prison.