Lowest of the low EXCLUSIVE
Ex-BBC reporter stole £1000 from charity account of boy with incurable brain tumour
AN EX-BBC correspondent stole charity intended for a boy of four who is battling incurable brain tumours.
Sina Graham, 63, pocketed £1000 intended to support the Lyle Cornet Foundation after helping to organise a fundraiser for the youngster.
The campaign to help four-year-old Lyle was backed by sports stars including former world heavyweight champion boxer Tyson Fury.
A total of £75,000 was collected to allow his family to adapt their house to meet his needs.
One event was a dinner held in memory of Lyle’s grandad, the former Scotland and British Lions rugby player Bruce Hay, who died from a brain tumour, aged 57, in 2007.
The bash, held at Edinburgh’s Corn Exchange, added tens of thousands of pounds to the tally but some funds were discovered to be missing.
Graham, events manager for the city’s Boroughmuir Rugby Club where Hay once played and earned his nickname – the Lion of Meggetland – had taken the cash.
She appeared at the city’s sheriff court on Monday and admitted stealing £1000 between January and May 2017.
Graham had been accused of stealing £10,145 of the charity funds but pled guilty to an amended charge shortly before her trial was due to begin.
The court heard Graham, who lives near Biggar in Lanarkshire, previously worked for the BBC
During a talk at a local social club, she reportedly discussed interviewing Nelson Mandela and travelling on Air Force One during Bill Clinton’s US presidency while working as a World Service correspondent.
Her defence lawyer Archie Hill said there had been “some dispute” over amounts raised and his client ended up giving the remaining £1000 to another charity.
He added: “She did not have the family’s authority. It’s a stain on her character and she’s upset.
Sheriff Adrian Cottam reserved his sentencing decision on Graham, who has recently been battling cancer.
Lyle’s mum, Lyndsey, 27, told the Record: “I’m glad she’s admitted her guilt and I think she’s very lucky.
“We want to concentrate on making memories with our son because we don’t know how long we’ve got him.”
The fundraising efforts gathered £75,000 towards the £90,000 needed to upgrade the family home in Loanhead, Midlothian, so that Lyle doesn’t have to be carried up and downstairs.