A carer who took £1,000 from an elderly woman’s account has been ordered to carry out unpaid work.
Perth Sheriff Court heard that the 86-year-old only began to become suspicious when she withdrew money while visiting her daughter.
Solicitor Cheryl McKnight, defending, said Fiona Cummings, 45, of Norlands, Errol, “accepted” she was responsible for the incident, but added that her client had paid “restitution” to her of the amount owed.
The court heard that Cummings worked for Perth and Kinross Council and used the elderly woman’s bank card to make a string of ATM withdrawals.
Depute fiscal Jim Eodanable said: “After a period of time, the accused was trusted to use the woman’s bank card for necessities.
“This continued until the woman went on holiday to visit her daughter, when she needed to take money out of her bank account.”
Mr Eodanable said the woman’s bank balance was “less than anticipated”.
“The woman then looked through various bank statements and didn’t understand why some monies had been withdrawn,” he added.
Cummings admitted that on various occasions between August 24 2011 and February 13 2012, at the Bank of Ireland ATM within the Post Office in Errol High Street, she stole £1,000.
She was ordered to carry out 130 hours of unpaid work within 12 months.