Carer given more time to repay cash she stole from pensioner
The sister of former First Minister Lord Jack McConnell was granted a temporary reprieve on Tuesday for stealing £9,000 from a pensioner she was supposed to be caring for.
Anne McConnell could have been jailed for up to a year for her crime, which was branded ‘despicable’ by Sheriff Elizabeth McFarlane.
McConnell, 51, told police officers probing her crime she would ask her Labour peer brother to pay back the money, which was reduced to £9,000 from £17,900 after striking a deal with prosecutors.
But her family declined to help financially and McConnell put her house on the market and sold some of her possessions to pay the £9,000 she owes.
Earlier this year McConnell admitted stealing the cash from an 80-year-old pensioner who suffers from severe arthritis, while working as her carer on Arran.
In February, Sheriff McFarlane told McConnell to pay back the full £9,000 within three months.
At the time the court heard she owed just over £7,000 of the £9,000 as she had made repayments. But when McConnell returned to the dock at Kilmarnock Sheriff Court this week it emerged there was still money outstanding.
Defence solicitor Gordon Ghee explained: ‘I hold £2,601 and she has given me another £400 today. She is extremely regretful of her behaviour towards this old lady, the complainer in this case.
‘Her house is for sale on the island of Arran and there is approximately £20,000 of equity in the property. Once the house is sold and that amount is paid, full repayment can be made.’
The solicitor also said he was unsure if McConnell had got a letter from her GP, as requested, to say whether or not she was fit for unpaid work.
He explained: ‘She has given me a big folder today – I’m sure if there’s a letter in there I can retrieve it. She’s been more concerned with the repayment. She has given me a list of items she’s sold, household items and a horsebox.’
Sheriff McFarlane deferred sentence on McConnell for a further six weeks for further repayment of the money to the bank, who reimbursed the pensioner she stole from, and to find out whether or not she is fit for unpaid work.
The disgraced carer still has the threat of a 12-month jail term hanging over her head.
McConnell stole the pensioner’s life savings between February and August last year after getting hold of the OAP’s bank card and PIN number and cleaning out her savings account.
The theft came to light when she went off on sick leave and the pensioner noticed the money was gone and her new carer contacted the police. McConnell told officers she’d stolen the money because she was going through the menopause and needed it to pay her mortgage.
Sentence was deferred until July.