A carer who stole hundreds of pounds from a 93-year-old woman with dementia has narrowly avoided jail.
Paula Irvine would visit the widow's home even when she wasn't on shift and take money from her purse, the Liverpool Echo reports. The defendant, from Walton, was only caught after the victim's daughter-in-law became suspicious and installed CCTV cameras in her living room.
Liverpool Crown Court heard today that the elderly woman, who suffers from dementia and angina, relies on carers who visit up to four times a day. They assist her by making meals and giving medication.
Irvine was one such helper, having cared for the pensioner and her late husband for around five years. In June 2021, the woman's daughter-in-law became "alarmed and confused" when she discovered around £600 was missing from her purse.
The OAP also told her "if it's the carers then they're going to get into trouble". The daughter-in-law noticed further occasions where money had gone missing over the following month, leading to her installing the security system on July 1 last year.
Eight days later, cameras captured the moment Irvine crouched behind the armchair the woman was sat in and rifled through her handbag - which had been placed on a stand next to the victim. £70 in cash was taken from her purse during this incident, footage of which was played to the court.
The court also heard of another occasion where her grandson was visiting while Irvine - of Kiddman Street - was present. She was described as "acting suspicious and appearing standoffish".
When the family checked with employer Local Solutions, in transpired that she "wasn't rota'd to work that day and shouldn't have been there". Irvine had also been upstairs at the address in Orrell Park at times - claiming to have been cleaning.
The allegations were reported to the police, and the 48-year-old grandmother was suspended amid pending investigations. In a last ditch attempt to cover up her crimes, she placed an envelope containing £540 upstairs in the property and falsely told officers she had placed it there for safekeeping after seeing her victim's purse left near the unlocked back door.
In total, Irvine had swindled at least £440 from her on five occasions in the space of just over a month. Members of the family were present in court as a statement was read out on their behalf, describing how they had been left "disgusted, upset and disappointed".
It read: "When we found that money had been going missing on a regular basis, the family didn't suspect Paula initially as she had always appeared to be a hard-working, caring person. Someone in a position of power who was meant to be helping [the victim] was actually abusing her.
"We are disgusted that someone could do this to an elderly lady who trusted her. She took advantage of a lovely 93-year-old woman with dementia."
Steve McNally, defending, told the court that the "circumstances were unpalatable and difficult to hear". He added that his client had "struggled financially" and had fallen into debts, having been in receipt of benefits even while working.
Mr McNally said: "There is very little mitigation to be drawn from the circumstances, other than perhaps to say it began impulsively - she still can't understand why she acted in the way she did. It will be quite apparent to the court that this is entirely out of character.
"Very unusually, she didn't spend the money she stole. She didn't lavish herself with luxury items.
"What she achieved from taking the money is nothing more than stress, shame and remorse. Equally unusually, she returned the money to [the victim].
"She is described as the glue that holds her family together. Her involvement in the criminal justice system has been a searing and stark experience for this particular lady and we submit with some confidence it will not be repeated."
Irvine, who has no previous convictions, admitted five counts of theft and was handed a six-month imprisonment suspended for a year. She was also told to serve a three-month curfew from 6pm to 5am plus a 20-day rehabilitation activity requirement.
Sentencing, Recorder Peter Cowan said: "It was a sordid, nasty offence to commit in any circumstances, never mind in the position of trust which you had been placed. You were committing these unpleasant offences over a period of six weeks.
"What is striking about this is, unsurprisingly, [the victim] was very upset when she discovered your taking money from her. It has caused her to suffer a loss of confidence and independence.
"People depend on the trust and integrity of carers. When anybody falls short and betrays that trust, that has a ripple effect.
"The conclusion I've come to, by a narrow margin, is that appropriate punishment can be achieved without making the sentence one of immediate custody. You have been punished by the loss of your job and good character."
Irvine must also pay a victim surcharge.
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