Cleaner pilfered OAP’s savings

Woman (46) admits she stole £4500

A cleaner plundered a vulnerable pensioner’s bank account of her life savings – and then went on a shopping spree at more than a dozen stores in Perth, Crieff and Muthill.

Altogether, 46-year-old Louise McGregor, of Sauchie Terrace, Crieff, helped herself to almost £4500 belonging to the frail 85-year-old.

But she has now repaid £2600 of the missing cash, Perth Sheriff Court was told.

And she has been ordered to continue saving up £100 a month to reimburse the devastated OAP who was in hospital when she became aware of the accused’s despicable behaviour.

The court heard that McGregor had been given the pensioner’s bank card and PIN number so she could do shopping for the elderly woman, described as “fragile” and suffering from a heart condition.

But the accused repeatedly used it to buy food and other items for herself, visiting 14 different stores – including the Perfume Shop in Perth and other outlets in Strathearn and Stirling.

She admitted stealing a total of £4486.19p between October 24, 2012, and March 25, 2013.

The accused had been employed by the elderly woman as a cleaner at her home in Comrie.

When confronted by police over her deception, she broke down in tears, according to the prosecution.

On May 3, 2013, while the OAP was in Crieff Community Hospital, she received a letter from the Bank of Scotland stating that a direct debit hadn’t been paid because there were “insufficient funds” in her account.

“That caused her extra stress given her poorly state and fragile condition,” explained depute fiscal Bill Kermode.

Bank statements were obtained and, when they were scrutinised, various transactions, which she hadn’t carried out, came to light.

“The complainer was shocked at that, having worked her entire life to find her savings had been plundered.”

Due to the “obvious ill effect” this was having on the OAP because of her heart condition, the police weren’t alerted at that stage although the card was stopped.

Officers later became involved and the accused was detained and interviewed.

McGregor told police she was in a “lot of debt” and was unable to cover her bills.

A number of the fraudulent transactions had been caught on CCTV.

“Some property was recovered from the accused’s house but not a huge amount,” according to the fiscal McGregor had used the card to shop at outlets including the Co-op, B&Q, Argos, Farmfoods, The Perfume Shop, The Factory Shop, Crieff, Sweeney’s Garage, Muthill, and Methven Stores, as well as supermarkets Morrisons and Tesco.

Solicitor Paul Ralph told the court on Wednesday last week that £2100 had been repaid, along with another £600 which he handed over in court.

The court was told previously that McGregor received state benefits and her priority had been to repay the outstanding cash.

Sheriff Lindsay Foulis agreed to defer sentence until August 30 next year, with the accused maintaining her £100 a month repayments.

He has called for a supplementary background report on the accused before deciding McGregor’s fate then.

The complainer was shocked, having worked her entire life, to find her savings plundered