A couple married for more than 60 years have been forced to live apart after a carer stole £20,000 from their bank account.
Rodney and Lily Crowder trusted Caroline Davis so much they gave her their bank cards and the pin numbers to their accounts so that she could withdraw cash to do their shopping.
Davis started to take out extra money which she pocketed for herself.
The amounts grew and grew and the elderly couple had no idea what was happening with Rodney (84), a retired British Rail worker, spending most of his time looking after 81-year-old Lily (known as Lesley) at their home in Heathfield Avenue, Spalding, after she had suffered a stroke.
But after Mr Crowder suffered a fall in June 2012, he was diagnosed with dementia and admitted to a care home in Boston. Social services placed a charge on the family home to cover his fees and initially the family were able to pay for Lily to stay with him for a few weeks but she then returned home when the money ran out.
As a result the couple have been apart for the first time since their marriage with Lily now faced with a £40 taxi journey to see her husband.
Davis (38), of Newlands Road, Surfleet, was jailed for six months after she admitted fraud between November 2011 and July 2013.
Recorder Gareth Evans QC, passing sentence at Lincoln Crown Court, ordered the confiscation of £20,000 of her assets which is to be repaid to the Crowders as compensation.
He told Davis: “What you did was wicked. You plundered the bank accounts of two elderly people who trusted you.
“People of that age are very vulnerable. You must have realised that when you started taking the money. The effect on the Crowders has been immense. In their last years together they have been separated.”
Nick Bleaney, defending, said: “It started off as borrowing with the intent to repay the money but the financial pressure on her increased because her husband’s work had placed him on short time and his wages went down.
“It went unnoticed and when it all adds up the figure is alarming.”
The Crowders’ son Rod (56), whose suspicions led to the thefts being uncovered, said: “This woman was wicked.
“I had no idea this was happening. We trusted her almost as family. She even came to my parents’ 60th wedding anniversary party.
“Mum and Dad should be together. This is the first time they’ve really been apart since they’ve been married and when the compensation comes through we will make sure they are together in the same care home but the house will have to be sold.
“It has been absolutely traumatic for our family.”
He told The Voice that he was “surprised” at the sentence being only six months and urged people to ensure their parents were not being ripped off.
