A cruel carer has been jailed after fleecing her own cousin out of £47,000 of her life savings and leaving her with just 21p.
Karen Devonport asked to "borrow" cash from her relative, who she described as being like a sister, on 45 occasions over a 20-month period by pretending she needed it to pay for her daughter's wedding, solicitors' bills, a baby shower, insurance, car repairs and a deposit for a trip to New York. A court heard that the 58-year-old told the victim she was soon expecting a £65,000 divorce settlement, which she would use to pay her back. In fact, she had already received the money and spent it.
Newcastle Crown Court was told that Devonport actually frittered her cousin's cash, which she and her husband had been saving since 1984, on a lifestyle of paying for meals out and events with friends and presents. And, when the devastated victim finally realised what had happened and reported the matter to the police, she was left with just 21p in her building society account.
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Prosecutors said that, because the victim had not told her family about lending Devonport the money, her mental health deteriorated to the point that her daughter thought she was suffering from dementia. Even after she realised what had happened, she still felt "guilty" for being duped into parting with her life savings and for reporting Devonport to the police.
Judge Christopher Prince told her she should not feel "one iota" of guilt as she was "absolutely defenceless against one of the people closest to her in her life cheating her out of money by fraud".
Devonport, of Benfleet Avenue, in Sunderland, pleaded guilty to fraud by false representation and was jailed for 28 months. Locking her up, Judge Prince said: "This is an offence where you have abused a position of trust, which you were held by a member of your family with whom you were very close. She had not one reason to doubt your assurances to her that lending you her life savings, that you were frittering away, would be repaid."
The judge added: "It was an extraordinarily mean offence committed against an extremely close member of your family, your cousin. You're close in age, you have grown up together, you were like sisters. You have stolen all her and her husband's life savings by committing this offence."
The court heard that Devonport first asked to lend cash from her cousin in April 2019 and went on to "borrow" more money on 44 further occasions over a 20 month period until she owed a total of £47,074. Alec Burns, prosecuting, said Devonport initially said she needed the money for pay for her daughter's wedding but it had actually already been paid for. Mr Burns added: "She said she was due a divorce settlement of £65,000 and would pay her back. As it turned out, she had already had that money for a year and spent it."
Mr Burns told the court that Devonport started telling her cousin she needed cash for solicitors' fees, a baby shower, insurance, car repairs, a deposit for a trip abroad and to pay council tax. After 20 months, the suspicious victim confronted Devonport, who once again assured her she would get the money back.
However, during the summer last year, Devonport was challenged again and this time came clean. Mr Burns continued: "By this time, of course, [the victim] knew the money was not there and she had had the divorce payment a year in advance."
The court heard that the con had had a "profound" effect on the victim, who was left needing medication for depression. In a statement, she said had no reason not to believe or trust Devonport, adding: "The stress of keeping this secret from my husband and family made me very unwell and my family started noticing I was not myself. It got to the point that my daughter thought I was suffering from dementia."
The victim continued: "Karen has taken all my life savings. I was left with 21p in my building society account. [My husband] and I had been saving since we got married in 1984. This was all the savings we had. I still can't believe this has happened. I can't believe the betrayal by Karen, a close family member, someone I thought I could trust completely."
The court was told that Devonport suffered a "breakdown" after her marriage ended in 2018 and often felt "lonely and isolated". As a result, she used her cousin's money to pay for meals out and events with friends and to buy them gifts. Sue Hirst, defending, said: "She is thoroughly ashamed about her own behaviour and the devastation she knows she has caused to her cousin.
"She fully understands and grasps that she has betrayed all the people she has been closest to throughout her life." Ms Hirst said Devonport, who works as a carer, had spent her divorce settlement on a car, rent, and a "couple of modest holidays".
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