A pharmacist ordered cocaine through chemists' shops where she was working and stole it to feed her drug habit, a disciplinary hearing heard.

Dr Susanne Begley, of Wilbury Road, Hove, was caught out when staff became suspicious of the presence of the drug in the cabinets.

After a consignment was handed over at Lloyds Chemist in Goring, the invoice was seized from the delivery man, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society's statutory committee heard.

Society inspectors spoke to Dr Begley, who later admitted 12 offences for which she received a two-year suspended prison sentence at Chichester Crown Court last April.

She had admitted three theft charges and one of attempted theft and asked for eight similar offences to be taken into consideration.

She had also erroneously dispensed a 500ml bottle of the heroin substitute methadone instead of 300ml of Temazepam at a pharmacy in Kent on January 21, the committee heard.

Geoffrey Hudson, for the Society, told the hearing the three theft charges each involved five grams of liquid cocaine hydrochloride.

He said: "Orders were placed when she was working as a locum and when staff became aware of another order on July 26 they decided to act.

"They intercepted the delivery man and obtained the invoice from him. Inspectors entered and spoke to Dr Begley. She admitted ordering the cocaine and signing for it and stealing cocaine from other pharmacies to feed her drug habit."

Dr Begley told the committee she had been off drugs since August last year.

Committee chairman Lord Fraser of Carmyllie QC said Dr Begley's conviction "renders her unfit to be on the register."

He added: "She clearly had a very unfortunate addiction problem at the time that led her to steal from her employers."