A Chippenham woman charged with stealing £10 from a butcher’s in the town has admitted assaulting a member of police staff while she was in custody.

Salvia Mucha, 62, of Chelwood Close, was arrested on Saturday on suspicion of robbery from Butler’s Butchers on Borough Parade.

She appeared before magistrates in Chippenham on Monday, and admitted throwing a cup of water in the face of a female NHS worker who was trying to assess her.

Mucha also pleaded guilty to throwing a cordless police phone down a toilet, while speaking to her solicitor, rendering it unusable.

She was remanded in custody, and will appear before a judge at Swindon Crown Court on August 15.

Sergeant Phil Connor, of the Chippenham Neighbourhood Policing Team, said: “The butcher was preparing the meat for the shop, when a female came in and asked for the time and what was on offer that day.

“The butcher explained the offers that were available, when all of a sudden, after a short conversation, she changed her manner, and became fixated on him.

"She demanded £10 out of the till or she would kill him, and when he explained there were other staff in the shop she threatened to kill them too.”

Fearing for his wellbeing, the butcher handed over £10 and the woman left the shop.

Ms Mucha was detained a short time afterwards, and was taken into custody at Melksham Police Station, where she was charged with assault and causing criminal damage to police property while in a police cell.

Sgt Connor said: “This woman has been causing considerable harm within the community and we have been working with our partners in Wiltshire Council and Jephson Housing Association.

“She is already the subject of a county court injunction, which she is in breach of, and we have real concerns about her escalating behaviour and the effect this is having on the community in general.”