Danielle Dawn Darben in Maroochydore court for fraud, stealing, drugs

A serial fraudster who used a stolen credit card to book a Sunshine Coast hotel had a rude awakening when police welcomed her at the check-in. Read how she was caught.

An ex-medical student and serial fraudster has continued to steal from strangers with her latest shopping spree totalling more than $1400.

Danielle Dawn Darben, 37, was placed on a suspended prison sentence in Maroochydore Magistrates Court on Thursday after pleading guilty to five charges of fraud, four charges of stealing, three charges of possessing dangerous drugs and two charges of possessing utensils.

Darben was also charged with breaching her probation order and was therefore resentenced for her previous fraud matters.

Police prosecutor Mick Ruddiman said the fresh offending started in August, just two weeks after she had been placed on probation.

The court heard police found the 37-year-old with 2g of methamphetamine, 4g of marijuana and a glass pipe at IGA Maroochydore on August 26, 2021.

Police then searched her backpack and found mail that had been stolen from Coastal Developmental Paediatrics, Sunstate Strata and Sunwest Construction on August 26, 2021.

A witness told police they saw the woman taking the mail from the letterboxes but Darben told police she found it on the floor and picked it up for “safe keeping”.

Some months later in October, a victim was checking their NAB bank balance when they saw a transaction totalling $771 taken by the Catalina Apartments on Sixth Ave, Maroochydore.

The transaction was for the rental of a room for three nights from October 31 to November 3, 2021.

When Darben went to check in to her booking at the apartment building, police met her there and arrested her.

Darben’s bag was searched by police who found marijuana, a glass pipe and several documents with credit card details on them.

Danielle Dawn Darben outside Maroochydore Magistrates Court.

She told police she had found the documents in bins located outside businesses in Maroochydore.

Then in January of 2022, Darben stole a credit card from a second victim’s letterbox in Warana.

She used it at convenience store in Maroochydore to the value of $65.84, before booking a hotel room worth $410 online at the Cotton Tree Modern Apartments.

Darben also spent $90.96 at Chemist Warehouse and $65.65 at the BP in Kawana.

Defence lawyer Alan Phillips said his client was living with her mother on Bribie Island until she can afford a rental home of her own.

Mr Phillips told the court Darben had studied biomedical science before working in a pathologist’s office for six years.

He said Darben’s spiral into crime was due a relationship breakdown.

Darben was also resentenced for one count of wilful damage, five counts of fraud, two counts of attempted fraud and other drugs matters.

Magistrate Matthew McLaughlin said the prior offending involved Darben using a credit card to buy items and vandalising letter boxes for a year.

Mr McLaughlin said probation was a “complete waste of time” as she received the order on August 12, didn’t show up after the first check in and on August 26 she was reoffending.

“The fact you keep coming back and doing the same thing is a real concern because it shows a degree of arrogance,” Mr McLaughlin said.

“It's giving the finger to the whole system.”

Darben’s probation order was revoked and she was resentenced on the original charges as well as the fresh ones.

She received three months prison suspended for a year. Convictions were recorded.