A SINGLE MUM who snatched a carrier bag containing £9,000 from a customer at a Southampton bank has escaped a prison sentence and is unlikely to pay a penny back.

Louise Baker embarked on a lavish spending spree after swiping bundles of notes left by an absent-minded shopper just moments before.

She splashed the cash on a fridge freezer, carpet and a kettle while her devastated victim made a desperate attempt to trace his hard-earned money.

Now the mum-of-four has been spared jail after a judge took pity on her and ruled her financial problems made it impossible for her to compensate him thousands of pounds still outstanding.

Judge Nicholas Rowland warned the theft would normally warrant a prison sentence but said: “It was wholly out of character stealing money from the bank.

“It was on the spur of the moment and it caused all sorts of problems for him [the victim].

“There were reasons as a single mother of four children with no support from the father.”

Louise Baker

Baker, 30, whose address cannot be disclosed for legal reasons, admitted the charge.

Handing her a 12-month community order suspended for 12 months, he added: “I would like to compensate him but you are on benefits and would not be able to pay.”

Baker must also carry out 80 hours of unpaid work.

The single mum left Southampton Crown Court with her face shrouded with a coat after being handed a community order for theft.

The theft took place at Barclays Bank in Shirley on July 23.

The court heard how victim Salaur Rahman Chowdhury visited the branch to withdraw £15,000 to pay for a property deal and a new car.

He placed some of the money in a carrier bag which he accidentally left behind on a chair.

The court heard how CCTV footage showed Baker carrying the same bag shortly afterwards.

Prosecutor Martyn Booth told the court: “She happened to be in the bank at the same time and it looks like it was opportunistic.”

Police arrested her two days later and confiscated £1,570 stashed in the car she was travelling in.

Officers managed to claw back £2,300 she had paid to Carpets Direct for a new carpet.

But £5,130 of the cash remains outstanding The court also heard how Baker had debts of £15,000 and would be unlikely to comply with a compensation order requiring her to pay £100 a week.

In mitigation defence barrister Francis McGrath stressed it was a “theft by finding” rather from a person and said: “This was giving temptation to finders keepers and not looking a gift horse in the mouth.”

He pointed out her previous good character and how she is the sole carer of her children.