FIVE women Romanian asylum seekers were arrested after walking out of a Blackburn shop with £130 worth of blouses, jumpers and skirts.

Blackburn magistrates heard that four of the women had addresses in London and one in Coventry.

They had all travelled to Manchester to visit friends and family.

Jonathon Taylor, defending, said they had come to Blackburn to visit a Pentecostal church which they had been told about

Magdelena Zinca, 26, Placuta Stoica, 28, Eugenia Lincan, 36, Lucia Constantin, 17, and Artimeza Duhitru, 28, all pleaded guilty to shoplifting at Creations in East Park Road, Blackburn.

They were all given a conditional discharge for six months.

Eddie Harrison, prosecuting, said all five women had gone into the shop and some distracted the shopkeeper while others stole items. Three of them had previous convictions for shoplifting when they had also been given conditional discharges.

Mr Taylor said that all five women were married and two of them were pregnant. None of them spoke any English and an interpreter was present in court.

He said they had friends and relatives in Manchester and while visiting them had been told about the Pentecostal church in Blackburn.

"That is why they came here and it seems that they went into this shop by chance, liked the items on display and removed them," said Mr Taylor.

"They are genuinely ashamed of what they have done and at the first opportunity will be leaving Blackburn and going back to their homes in London and Coventry."