Melanie Rose Pappin faces Mildura court for shoplifting

A woman accused of shoplifting thousands of dollars worth of groceries and booze from across Mildura has fronted court for alleged offending spanning years.

A Mildura woman has fronted court to face allegations she shoplifted thousands of dollars worth of groceries, booze and house plants.

Police prosecutors told the court Melanie Rose Pappin allegedly stole everything from weeks worth of groceries to house plants from Bunnings over the course of many years.

Melanie Pappin Rose faced court on 3 July 2023.

“On 28th of April this year the accused attended Bunnings on Fifteenth St. Through the nursery [she] placed a number of items in her bag including around $60 worth of indoor plants,” the prosecutor told the court.

“[She] then exited through the main entrance to the store making no attempt to pay.”

In August 2022 she is accused of stealing $800 worth of groceries from Ritchies IGA in Merbein and in November same year she is accused of stealing more than $120 worth of groceries.

The following week she went to the same store where she allegedly loaded a basket with $300 worth of groceries before she left the store without paying.

The following day she snatched up a number of bottles of Jack Daniels whisky and a bottle of vodka but police allege she failed to pay $315 for the items.

On another occasion, it is alleged Ms Pappin stole “meat products” with a value of about $200.

On October 30, 2022 Ms Pappin stole a further $100 worth of meat products from Coles on Fifteenth St and again on November 9, this time stealing $7 worth of coffee.

In a sentence indication hearing on Monday, Magistrate Patrick Southy weighed up the effectiveness of a community corrections order over Ms Pappin spending seven days in prison for the offending.

“Arguably she should probably get seven days in prison, given her history and the number of offences. What else can we explore?” he asked her lawyer.

Sahsa Taliakiono suggested her client may be suitable for a community corrections order.

“At the time she had no stable accommodation, she has since got stable accommodation, she has also been engaging in health services and drug counselling,” she said.

Mr Southy considered that a seven-day sentence wouldn’t be beneficial but said Ms Pappin also wouldn’t be well-served by a CCO.

“She’s not a great vehicle for specific or general deterrent, but what’s seven days in jail going to achieve?”

“We know that every single County Court judge would overturn my sentence on appeal and put her on a CCO, so why don’t we cut out the middle man?” he asked.

In the end, Ms Pappin’s matters were adjourned so that she could be assessed for the order.