Teacher guilty of theft skips out of sentencing

LONDON -- A high-spending British headmistress who used school money on trips, gifts and luxury goods failed to appear in court Friday for sentencing but was later found at home.

Paramedics were called to the home of Colleen McCabe hours after she failed to appear at Southwark Crown Court and an arrest warrant was issued. She was taken to the hospital in an ambulance.

Her lawyer, Paul Lewis, told the court that McCabe had gone to a hospital on Thursday complaining of chest pains but left before test results were available.

Judge Geoffrey Rivlin said there were "some quite significant health issues in this case" and urged reporters waiting outside the hospital to leave her alone. Hospital officials did not return a phone call seeking comment.

McCabe had been warned she faced a lengthy jail term after being convicted last month of theft and deception.

During the trial, prosecutor Andrew Wilcken said McCabe, a former nun, stole up to $790,000 to pay for expensive restaurant meals, tickets to West End musicals, Gucci jewelry and a $11,000 shoe collection that "would have made Imelda Marcos proud."

She also bought gifts for family and friends, including a trip for her parents on the Orient Express and a soccer season ticket for a former school governor.

McCabe was head of St. John Rigby College in south London for a decade. Prosecutors said her pilfering from the state-funded school's $4.8 million annual budget left it unable to pay janitors and sporting a library full of empty shelves.