Former royal harpist burgled houses - court told

Ebbw Vale-born Jemima Phillips, 28, appeared in court on the first day of a crown court trial, charged with four counts of burglary and one count of handling stolen goods.

The jury at Gloucester crown court was told that she has already admitted a count of fraud. On that occasion, she told police that she had been acting "under pressure and under threat from her boyfriend and another, unwillingly", prosecutor Martin Steen said.

It is alleged that the harpist - who performed at the wedding reception of Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall - took part in four burglaries between May 22 and May 29 this year in Coleford, Lydney and Milkwall in the Forest of Dean, taking items including a flat screen television, mobile phones, camcorders, laptops, a guitar, digital cameras and wallets containing several bank cards.

Mr Steen told the court Phillips, of St Briavels near Chepstow, and her co-defendant William Davies, 41, from Cheltenham, were recovering drug users.

Davies pleaded guilty to four counts of handling stolen goods, the jury heard. He denies the four charges of burglary.

Mr Steen said the pair were arrested on May 28 when PC James Stringer stopped Phillips' Ford Galaxy and discovered the stolen goods on the back seat and in the back seat footwells of the car.

Mr Steen also played four pieces of CCTV footage to the jury. He said three showed a man, alleged to be Davies, attempting to withdraw money from a cash machine with bank cards stolen only hours before and the fourth showed Phillips attempting to withdraw money from Nationwide in Monmouth with a stolen passbook. Her attempt was foiled after she provided the wrong postcode and spelt the passbook holder's name incorrectly, Mr Steen said.

"They were both recovering drug users who had problems. They were still using drugs on occasions," Mr steen added.

"They were clearly in each other's company over this period on a regular basis."

Proceeding