Woman, 38, defrauded care home of £67,000
ABOOKKEEPER conned her care home employer out of tens of thousands of pounds by overpaying herself and transferring large sums to her “controlling” partner.
Hannah Solomons fraudulently obtained more than £67,000 from Millbrook Residential Home in Pontllanfraith, where she was responsible for banking, organising invoices and paying staff wages.
Speaking at Cardiff Crown Court, prosecutor Marian Lewis said the defendant was in a position of trust and responsibility and caused “considerable loss” to the company.
The court heard she started working as a bookkeeper in 2006 for Millbrook Residential Home, which accommodated 28 elderly residents.
Prosecutors said she took on responsibility for a second care home in 2009 and became accounts manager the following year.
Ms Lewis said matters came to
light when the owner’s son started working for the business, overseeing the day-to-day accounting.
The deputy manager told him she had been contacted by Gwent Police, who came across discrepancies in the care home’s finances while investigating another matter.
Prosecutors said he requested documents from the company’s bank and carried out detailed analysis.
The court heard Solomons was responsible at the time for making all payments from the care home.
Prosecutors said she was “upset” when her hours were cut from 36 a week to 25 and she told her manager she “would not be able to survive”.
Analysis revealed she had made payments amounting to £28,645.26 between March and July 2012 to someone who had nothing to do with the company.
Ms Lewis said: “It was apparent that the defendant, who was responsible for paying salaries, had made overpayments to herself.”
The court heard she paid herself an extra £38,929.71 between 201014, making the total amount of the fraud £67,574.45.
Solomons was interviewed in July 2015 and admitted the offending.
The 38-year-old, who was living in the Caerphilly area at the time, admitted two counts of fraud by false representation.
Meirion Davies, defending, said his client had no previous convictions and was in a coercive relationship at the time.
The court heard she suffered domestic violence, including a sustained assault in August 2013 which left her with “appalling injuries”.
Mr Davies said: “She had to have most of her ribcage reconstructed. What she has been through is horrifying.”
He added she had to live with the injuries for six years before having surgery in June this year, while also waiting five years to be sentenced.
The defence barrister said: “Something has clearly gone radically wrong. That sort of delay is inexcusable on any basis.”
Judge Jeremy Jenkins noted the offending happened over a “substantial” period of time and accepted she did not benefit financially herself.
He described her relationship as “toxic and cruel”, adding: “He was a malign influence on you.”
The judge accepted that the money went straight to her partner, who was controlling her life at the time and assaulted her on several occasions.
Solomons was given a 15-month prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, and ordered to complete 10 days of a rehabilitation activity.