POLICE have said they hope the lengthy sentence handed down to a callous robber who targeted vulnerable people will offer some comfort to her victims.

As Basildon Nub News reported last week, Carly Clough, of Town Square, Basildon was jailed for ten years and eight months for a string of crimes carried out in quick succession after tricking her way into their homes in Basildon.

On 4 May she had approached a woman who was walking home and claimed she needed money for electricity. Feeling sorry for her, the victim invited her back to her flat in Swanstead and gave her £10.

Clough asked to borrow her mobile phone to make a call, but ran off with it.

She then twice targeted an 84-year-old man – firstly stealing from him, then returning to say she would repay him before stealing from him again.

She knocked on his door in Brempsons on 16 May and asked to use the toilet. He let her in and she asked if he could lend her money. He said he didn't and only had £25. But when he showed her his wallet, she grabbed the money and ran off.

She then returned on 18 May, claiming she wanted to repay him. He invited her in after seeing what he thought was £40 in her hand.

Once inside, Clough asked if he had change. But when he checked his wallet, she snatched it from him. He tried to stop her leaving, but she climbed out of the kitchen window. The wallet contained £180 and a bank card.

The following day, she knocked on a 98-year-old woman's door in Hanover Drive in the early hours of 19 May and shouted for help. The concerned victim answered the door and Clough said she needed help and a glass of water.

She then held the terrified woman around the shoulder and pointed a screwdriver at her throat.

Clough kept shouting for money and stole her purse, containing £50 cash and bank cards. The cards were later used to withdraw more than £300.

Later the same day, Clough knocked on a woman's door in Travers Way and asked to use the toilet. When she was allowed inside, she claimed the victim owed £20 to one of Clough's relatives.

She did not owe any money and during the conversation, Clough grabbed her handbag from a table and ran out. It contained £120 and bank cards.

Clough was arrested on 19 May and charged with two counts of robbery and three counts of theft.

26-year-old Clough admitted the charges at Basildon Crown Court on 18 June and was sentenced on Thursday 11 March.

Detective Inspector Stewart Eastbrook said: "Clough callously targeted her elderly victims by claiming to need help, and then took advantage of their kindness to rob and steal from them.

"She put her oldest victim through a terrifying ordeal, which could so easily have led to her being seriously hurt.

"The length of Clough's prison sentence reflects just how serious her crimes were and I hope it gives the people she targeted some comfort and safety to know she will be behind bars for a considerable time."