Woman jailed for 'mean and nasty' theft of sleeping patient's bank cards in Cork hospital

The defendant also stole a tip jar from the counter of a deli on Princes Street

The patient was in St Catherine’s ward in the Mercy University Hospital in Cork city when she woke to find that her two bank cards, including a Revolut card, had been stolen while she slept. File picture: Larry Cummins

A hospital patient had two bank cards stolen from her bedside locker as she slept in a crime which the sentencing judge described as particularly mean and nasty.

Lisa Lenihan pleaded guilty to this and other thefts at Cork District Court where Judge Olann Kelleher jailed her for a total of six months.

Sergeant John Kelleher said that on August 2 at Mercy University Hospital a patient reported the theft of her two bank cards while she was sleeping. The patient was in St Catherine’s ward as a surgical in-patient and she woke to find that her two bank cards, including a Revolut card, had been stolen while she slept.

Lisa Lenihan had been observed loitering on the ward earlier. She admitted to gardaí when questioned that she had taken the two cards while there as a patient at the accident and emergency unit.

On July 25, the same defendant, who is 35 years old and living at Cork Simon Community, was involved in another theft. This time she stole a tip jar from the counter of a deli on Princes Street and placed it in her handbag as she waited to be served a cup of tea. It was estimated that there was approximately €15 in the tip jar at the time.

On June 6 she was involved in the theft of over €180 worth of clothing from Elvery Sports on Oliver Plunkett Street, Cork. This stolen property was recovered as the theft was immediately detected.

The defendant was remanded in custody since the day of the third theft at the Mercy hospital.

The same woman was sentenced to eight months in prison on June 6 but was given temporary release from prison very soon after the commencement of that sentence, defence solicitor Eddie Burke told the court. 

He said the prison would deal with the issue that has now arisen in relation to committing crimes while on temporary release. Mr Burke said Ms Lenihan was hoping to go directly into drug treatment whenever she is released from prison.

Judge Olann Kelleher imposed a total sentence of six months backdated to August 2 for the three new theft offences. He commented: “One of them was particularly mean and nasty when a patient was getting treatment in the Mercy and her cards were stolen when she was asleep.”