ASBO pensioner Dorothy Evans was jailed for six months today for harassing her neighbours and breaching her order.

Widow Evans, 81, of Park Crescent, Abergavenny, who was said to have made the lives of her neighbours a misery for almost ten years branded "the archetypal neighbour from hell", was helped from the dock at Cardiff crown court to the cells by two women security officers.

Evans, who was dressed in a cloak and wearing a white hat, repeatedly shouted: "Oh my God, oh my God."

Minutes before, her counsel David Webster had said: "She stands in absolute terror of going to prison."

Evans had been found guilty in January of harassing her neighbour Mrs Angela Casa by shouting insulting and abusive words at her and she was also found guilty of six breaches of her anti social behaviour order over the abuse she had meted out to the Casa family.

Her trial heard that she hit Mrs Casa with a walking stick, threatened to kill the family dog and told the Casa's teenage daughter she was a witch.

Judge Roderick Denyer told Evans: "Mr and Mrs Casa were eminently decent and reasonable people who did their best to get on with you. You made their lives a misery. You have a long history of offences of this kind."

He said in November 1999 she was convicted of three offences of harassment, in March 2001 several offences of harassment, in August 2004 she was convicted of harrassment and breach of a restraining order and in May 2005 she was made subject to a five year ASBO for harassment.

"These offences all involve neighbours of yours and it is absolutely clear that you will not change," the judge said.

He said a pre-sentence report of 2004 indicated she refused to accept blame or responsibility for what she did and had no sympathy for her neighbours whom she claimed were conspiring to send her to prison.

Only recently, the judge said Evans deliberately and in breach of her bail condition failed to attend a meeting with a probation officer.

He added: "It seems to me that in spite of your age and infirmities you have deliberately for nearly ten years made life a misery for your neighbours.

"The consequences must now be brought home to you."

Earlier Mr Webster said that Evans was scheduled to go for a hospital examination tomorrow.

The basic dispute with neighbours, he said was because her house flooded and she was unable to sell the property.

"The effect of an immediate sentence would only ameliorate the situation for a short time," Mr Webster said.