A heroin addict who murdered her elderly neighbour by battering her with a rolling pin has been jailed for life with a minimum of 21 years.

Sandra Weir, 41, committed the "breathtakingly wicked" act after stealing from 82-year-old Mary Logie for years, using the cash to fund her drug habit.

Mrs Logie, known as Rae, was found lying in a pool of blood with multiple skull fractures and other "catastrophic" injuries in her flat in Green Gates, Leven, Fife, on the evening of January 5, 2016.

Judge Michael O'Grady QC, who previously described the manner of Mrs Logie's death as "breathtakingly wicked", handed the killer an automatic life term when she returned to the High Court in Edinburgh for sentencing on Thursday.

He ordered her to spend a minimum of 21 years behind bars before she can be considered for release.

The grandmother had 31 injuries to her head and neck, as well as bruising on her hands and fractured fingers from trying to defend herself.

A trial last month heard from neighbours who described hearing loud noises and a woman saying "ouch" on the day of Mrs Logie's death.

Weir got close to Mrs Logie by acting as an "unofficial carer" and helping out with errands.

She used her bank cards to withdraw cash and stole two rings from her to pawn for money.

Mrs Logie threatened to go to police over the theft after discovering money was missing but Weir persuaded her not to.

She claimed she had accidentally used the wrong card.

An old friend of Mrs Logie told the trial the pensioner had been left "very upset" to find money had disappeared from her account, and was forced to cut back on activities that she enjoyed.

The trial heard Weir had been a drug addict since her early 20s and had asked family for money to pay debts to Mrs Logie.

It took the jury just under an hour to find Weir guilty.

Mary Logie's son Ronald told STV News as he left court: "Justice was served but we would've wanted more."

Detective chief inspector Keith Hardie, of Police Scotland's major investigation team, said after the sentencing: "Sandra Weir is an evil and conniving woman who subjected Mary to a protracted period of bullying and intimidation, which culminated in the infliction of an unparalleled level of violence.

"She coerced Mary in order to obtain cash and other items of value. When this was no longer available to Weir, she subjected Mary to a horrendous attack, which left her with fatal injuries.

"Mary's death has had an impact on all who knew her, including the local community who provided us with information that allowed Weir to be brought to justice."

DCI Hardie urged the public to remain vigilant for any suspicious activity around the homes of elderly friends, relatives or neighbours, and report any concerns to police immediately.

He added: "I would finally like to thank Mary's family for their support throughout our investigation. I hope that today's sentence will give them a sense of closure and allow them to move forward with their lives."

Neighbour Charlie Gardner said the incident would never be forgotten by those living in Green Gates.

"It's not the same place anymore," he said. "I used to speak to Sandra and say hello in passing.

"It's hard to believe that she's done that to an elderly woman."

He said he remembered seeing Mrs Logie at the window of her flat.

"Now you're looking at two empty houses. One is the murderers' house and one is [Mrs Logie's]," he said.

"It's not good for the area. People around about here will never get over this."