Woman Guilty Of Jewellery Theft

Published on 02/02/09

A woman could be in hot water over a cheeky crime involving gold diamond rings.

Kimbra Rees has been found guilty of theft by Leicester crown court after swapping a band worth around £3,000 for a worthless lookalike.

The 41-year-old made it away with the glittering item, only to be caught when trying a similar con with diamond necklaces.

She has now been warned she could face a prison term for her misdemeanors when she is sentenced next month.

Natalie Burdett, the shop assistant taken in by the scheme, commented she realised she had been tricked as soon as Ms Rees turned to leave, but the worker was unable to stop her from making it out of the door in time.

Ms Burdett told the court: "I noticed the most expensive ring…was missing and had been replaced by something completely different. I was shocked."

Last month, a host of unclaimed items such as gold diamond rings were put up for sale on eBay by US authorities.