Thieving carers get banged up
aThis week’s just deserts for crooked carers starts with Pauline Tagg, who stole £68,000 from a disabled 94-year-old over two years.
The 67-year-old crook, from Braintree, Essex, befriended the dementia sufferer, taking control of her bank accounts under the pretence of helping with shopping.
She squandered the cash on gambling and holidays, and intercepted the victim’s post in an attempt to avoid detection.
Sentencing her to 28 months jail at Chelmsford crown court, Recorder Mark Weekes said: “You lived a luxurious lifestyle on the proceeds of the crime, an offence so serious that a custodial sentence had to be imposed.”
In a separate case, Jemma Laney stole £16,500 from the online bank account of the 78-year-old man in her care.
Laney, 30, was jailed for a year after admitting fraud and theft charges.
The parasite from Warrington, Cheshire, spent the cash on designer goods including Tag Heuer and Emporio Armani watches.
After the hearing at Chester crown court, Det Con Ian Morris said: “This is a shocking way to treat a vulnerable man”.