'Reprehensible': Plumber punished for defrauding woman with dementia of $292k

James Lawrence Michael Raftery (right), 33, walks out of the ACT courts building with his mother on a previous occasion. Picture: Blake Foden

A plumber who defrauded a 90-year-old woman with dementia of about $292,000 during his handyman services has failed in his bid to undergo drug and alcohol rehabilitation before going to jail.

James Lawrence Michael Raftery entered a late guilty plea to one count of theft and fronted the ACT Supreme Court on Tuesday for sentencing.