A burglar who was confronted by a householder asked to leave when the police were called, saying she was '12 years old' and 'homeless', a court heard.
Samantha Ryan, 21, had broken into a bungalow in Salford with two men through a faulty kitchen window.
Property and cash worth more than £3,400 was stolen during the break in, Manchester Crown Court heard.
After the woman who lives in the home alone returned after midnight, she unlocked her door and heard male and female voices.
Her cousin who dropped her home was still there, so he went to help.
They both went back in the house. The two men ran off and escaped when they saw the pair, but Ryan remained.
Manchester Crown Court heard Ryan tried to walk past them to leave the bungalow, but they shut the door and locked it.
Ryan asked them to let her leave, saying she was '12-years-old' and 'homeless'.
But they detained Ryan while the police arrived to arrest her, on October 1 last year.
The victim later found that a number of items had been stolen, including £2,000 in cash, two iPhones, a laptop and an iPad, prosecutor Charlotte Rimmer said.
In a victim impact statement, the resident said it was the second time she had been burgled in the space of a few weeks.
She said: "I am very scared. I feel like I can't live here any more as I don't feel safe."
Ryan replied 'no comment' to questions in interview with the police.
The two men who also broke in have never been found.
Defending, Alexandra Sutton said Ryan had suffered difficulties in her childhood.
She said Ryan had been 'vulnerable to the influence of older peers', and had been taking crack cocaine.
Ms Sutton said Ryan accepted that her problems were no excuse for her behaviour, and that she is genuinely remorseful.
Sentencing, Judge Alan Conrad QC said it was a serious case, but spared her jail.
He told her: "You with others were involved in a serious dwelling house burglary.
"You violated somebody's house in the early hours of the morning.
"It is aggravated by the fact there was an encounter with the householder when they came back, and you took valuable property."
Judge Conrad said Ryan could have no complaint if she was sent to prison.
But a pre-sentence report said she was a 'vulnerable' woman who has no previous convictions.
Judge Conrad also said she was susceptible to the influence of those 'more sophisticated' than her.
Ryan, of no fixed address, was sentenced to 12 months in prison, suspended for 18 months, after pleading guilty to an offence of burglary.
She must complete a 12 month drug rehabilitation course and a 30 day rehabilitation activity requirement.
