A STOURBRIDGE pub landlady who stole nearly £5,500 in cash and £7,500 of stock in just two months has avoided spending time behind bars.

Charlotte Maley who ran The Cross, in Glasshouse Hill, was told by judge Marcus Tregilgas-Davey that it was clear she had shown no remorse or contrition for her crimes.

He said the 27-year-old – a woman of previous good character – had tried to blame others for the missing cash and stock.

But he said she had now lost her reputation and the conviction would cause problems when she tried to obtain other employment in the future.

Maley, of High Street, Lye, admitted two charges of theft and she was given a 10 month jail term suspended for two years.

The judge, sitting at Wolverhampton Crown Court, further ruled she must carry out 175 hours unpaid work in the community.

Oliver Woolhouse, prosecuting, said Maley failed to bank takings from the pub or bank the correct amount and a check then revealed there was a deficit in the cash accounts of £5,442.

It was also discovered by officials from the brewery that £7,582 worth of stock had been lost during the short time she had been in charge.

Samantha Powis, defending, stressed Maley had not enjoyed a lavish lifestyle as she told the court it had been her first job looking after a public house.

Miss Powis said: “She had been left to her own devices. She was very much left to fend for herself. The offences were more inadvertent than calculated.”

The judge told Maley that it was clear to him that she had “tried to cover her tracks” by blaming the losses on others, but said he was able to avoid sending her straight into custody because it was her first criminal offence.