A MOTHER smuggled 30,000 cigarettes into the country because she needed money to move house after her son was charged with murder, a court heard.

Darlington magistrates heard that Helen Wilson, 37, of Cresswell Drive, Newcastle, and her son, Kristopher, were attacked after he stabbed Anthony Cole, 17, to death in the early hours of New Year's Day last year.

The 19-year-old pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter at Newcastle Crown Court and, in October last year, was sentenced to four years in a young offenders' institution.

South Durham Magistrates' Court, sitting in Darlington, were told Wilson had brought the cigarettes from Tenerife into the Durham Tees Valley Airport in exchange for £150. She was caught with 1,500 packets in two bags by customs bosses at the airport.

She pleaded guilty to evading tax and the court heard she was a serial smuggler who had committed the latest offences while on bail for similar crimes. In 2002, she was sentenced to four months in prison for smuggling cigarettes.

Kristian Mills, prosecuting, said she had evaded £5,000 in tax.

"She travelled with two passports, interchanging them in an effort to divert customs away from her criminal activity," said Mr Mills.

Talking about what happened after Kristopher was charged by police, Neil Connell, mitigating, said: "She was badly bruised, punched and kicked and her car was damaged. Kristopher was also assaulted.

"Ms Wilson found herself in a situation where she had to get out of the area, so she resorted to a bad habit.

"It is an indication of how desperate she was to get out of the area and help her son," he said.

Chairman of the bench John Welsh said: "We have been influenced by your personal circumstances. You were under pressure at the time and suffering from depression - we consider this was an act of desperation."

She was given a two-year community rehabilitation order and fined £150 costs.