Daughter ripped off her elderly parents’ money

‘THE degree of the betrayal of trust was shocking,’ said Campbeltown Sheriff Patrick Hughes sentencing a woman who stole from her dementia-suffering parents.

For more than four years Alphonsa Strang, 57, of 63 Dalaruan Street, Campbeltown, who pleaded guilty to one charge of embezzlement, siphoned money, totalling £18,000 from her parents’ bank accounts after they were placed in separate care homes.

The procurator fiscal depute told the court last Thursday that Strang’s thieving began on January 6 2011 and went on until November 2015. Strang had power of attorney over her parents’ accounts.

Small sums of money were allowed to be taken out to pay for treats and hair cuts for her father, who died last year, but at the time of the offences he lived in Knapdale ward at Lochgilphead hospital and her mother in a Campbeltown care home.

For her mother Strang also had to pay more than £500 a month as part of her accommodation charge.

In November 2015 police obtained statements from a Longrow bank which showed hundreds of transactions unrelated to her parents’ needs. There were payments to Paypal, Netflix, vehicle insurance and bills.

Strang’s own account at a different bank appeared to have little money going in or being paid out.

The police also found CCTV footage of Strang taking money from cash machines. Police also took a statement from the

mother’s care home as the accommodation money had not been paid and there was a debt.

In mitigation, Strang’s defence solicitor told the court that there were many letters about Strang’s good works and that on March 2 she was declared bankrupt.

One was from Strang’s daughter saying how a custodial sentence would affect her family as Strang provides childcare while she works.

Strang’s solicitor added: ‘She is deeply ashamed. She was once a respected business owner within the town but will no longer be able to hold her head high in public.’

In addition he tried to suggest that no one had been physically harmed by Strang’s actions.

Sheriff Patrick Hughes replied: ‘Do you think that people unable to get treats for themselves or hair cuts is not harm?’ He added that he had found it a very difficult decision and custody was at the forefront of his mind but having heard the mitigation he was persuaded on a different sentence.

Strang was ordered to complete 240 hours of unpaid work on a community payback order. It includes 18 months of supervision to be monitored every three months and she was warned that any failure would result in custody.