Appeal for cash is ‘above board’

Awomanjailed for stealing money to renovate her iconic lighthouse is now appealing for the public to donate money to help finish the project.

Brenda Ford-Sagers and her husband Robert bought historic Eilean Glas lighthouse on the remote Outer Hebridean island of Scalpay – but were sent to prison for stealing more than £100,000.

Their victim was English actress Dame Harriet Walter, hailed for her performances of Shakespeare, roles in TV's Downton Abbey and the Jane Austen film Sense and Sensibility.

Now, a decade after serving her jail term, Mrs Ford- Sagers has launched a public appeal for tens of thousands of pounds to help restore the building.

Despite admitting her crime in court, she

“Sent to prison for stealing more than £100,000”

maintains that both she and her husband were innocent – and insists the new project is all above board.

The tower and buildings were bought byMrs Ford-Sagers in 1984 to run a tea-room and self catering business.

In 1996, Mrs FordSagers started the Friends of Eilean Glas Trust to raise funds. Barred from being a trustee because she owned the property, she used a false name and, when the deception was discovered, the trustwas struck off the charity register.

Mr Ford-Sagers, a financial adviser with access to the estate of Dame Harriet's father Roderick Walter, was convicted of putting money from it into the lighthouse trust and other projects.

His wife admitted using £50,000 to pay off the lighthouse's mortgage.