A "despicable, disgusting" man stole more than £16,000 from his vulnerable 93-year-old aunt, who suffered from dementia.
Patrick Fitzsimons, 54, "stole (Brenda Wright's) dignity and quality of life" by using fraudulent cheques to siphon £16,669.06 from her bank account into his between March 2019 and July 2020. He claimed he looked after his aunt, who lived alone, and bought groceries for her - but friends said the vulnerable 93-year-old had only "biscuits, bread and ham" in her Southport home.
His nefarious plot was discovered when solicitors took control of Mrs Wright's finances due to her advancing dementia in late 2020.
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He was jailed for two years at Liverpool Crown Court today - however, his victim did not live to see justice done, as she died in November 2021.
Prosecutor Isabella Denn-White told the court how Fitzsimons often left Mrs Wright with little food in her house, and she was once found collapsed on the floor by a friend.
When Mrs Wright's niece, Helen Fearn, visited her in January 2021 after living abroad for several years, she found her aunt's house "in a neglected state", and found a book of blank cheques signed by her aunt. She was later informed by solicitors that Fitzsimons had been receiving large amounts of money from Mrs Wright's account.
Ms Denn-White said: "Copies of the cheques were presented to Brenda, who stated that it was her signature, but she didn't think she would have given the defendant those cheques. She didn't trust him and didn't want him at the house. She couldn't remember, believing the cheques she had given him were only for small amounts, not £450 to £500."
Some 34 cheques worth between £100 and £550 were cashed by Fitzsimons in a ten month period, with a further two cheques worth about £1,000 also being submitted, but denied by the bank.
Fitzsimons, of Queen's Road, Southport, pleaded guilty to fraud by abuse of position, and forgery in relation to the last two cheques.
Ms Fearn said: "Aunty Brenda was a very elderly lady. She had outlived her husband, brother and sister, our mum and nana, and had spent nearly 20 years living alone. She never had any children, but was a bonus mum and a bonus grandma to us and our children.
"She was a fiercely independent lady who stayed living in her home until the last few days of her life. She was also a very generous lady with her time and money. The revelance of this is that if Patrick needed money, he only needed to ask and she would probably have lent him the money. However, he chose to defraud her and steal her money instead.
"Patrick stole her ability to look after herself to the end. He stole her dignity and her quality of life. We can only describe him as despicable, disgraceful, and downright cowardly."
Paul Becker, defending, said Fitzsimons, a dad of two, had fallen into £46,000 worth of debt, and used his aunt's money to fund his drug addiction.
He said: "These are despicable crimes. There's no mitigation in these offences and I know the defendant is not just remorseful but disgusted and ashamed of himself what what he did to his elderly aunt. The defendant is going to have to live with what he did for the rest of his life; shameful behaviour which is not capable of being defended."
He added that Fitzsimons was unable to pay back the money he had stolen as he was currently on benefits.
Judge Ian Harris said: "You are Brenda's nephew. She was elderly, in her 90s, and suffering from dementia. You acted as her carer and she trusted you with her bank account. She was diagnosed with dementia in 2014 and she passed away aged 93 in 2021. Evidence shows when people called to see your aunt during that period there was only limited food in the house, despite your promises to buy food for her. The house was neglected and when relatives entered they found blank cheques signed by her.
"You systematically and cruelly siphoned money out of her account. It of course should have been used for her benefit. You didn't provide the food you should have done. This was shameless offending that betrayed the trust placed in you.
"Suspicions were aroused but you failed to respond to phonecalls and letters. You hoped, as cowards do, that this would all disappear."
He added: "You stole (Mrs Wright's) ability to look after herself to the end. She still had dignity while you were stealing from her, and quality of life, and Ms Fearn addresses your behaviour as despicable, disgraceful and downright cowardly. I agree."
He sentenced Fitzsimons to two years in prison for fraud and eight months for forgery, to run concurrently, and ordered him to pay £1,000 compensation.
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