A Christchurch woman has today admitted stealing her grandfather's war medals and pawning them off to fund her drug habit.
Sharlene Emily Reilly, 36, was desperate for drug money when she went rifling through her mother's drawers.
She found jewellery, including pendants, earrings and chains worth $3500, which she then flogged off at a Christchurch pawn shop.
And last June, when she was supposed to take her grandfather's Second World War medals to her grandmother in a rest home, she took them for herself.
Christchurch District Court heard today that she had relapsed into drugs, and also felt pressured into finding money for her partner's drug habit, and so she also sold off the precious family heirlooms.
Today, she admitted two charges of theft.
She also admitted using her grandmother's bank card to siphon off a further $3000.
Judge David Ruth remanded her on bail for sentencing on June 23. In the meantime, a restorative justice conference with her family will be considered.