Huntingdon: Niece Stole Thousands From Family

1 October 2013, 13:06 | Updated: 1 October 2013, 14:42

A Huntingdon woman who helped herself to thousands of pounds from her elderly uncle's bank account, then tried to blame her dad for the theft, has been jailed.

Katrina Shelton, 39, of Beaton Crescent, Huntingdon, was given permission to withdraw cash from the account on behalf of her father who would buy him groceries and pay bills.

However, in May 2011 Shelton began withdrawing an extra £50 and pocketing the cash. In June 2012 the uncle's family discovered there was only £5 remaining in the account - £25,000 less than expected.

Shelton was charged with the theft of £12,000, however she only admitted stealing between £2,500 and £3,000, blaming her father for the rest.

No evidence was submitted against her 70-year-old father and the court heard he was not capable of operating an ATM due to health issues.

Shelton was jailed for a total of 24 weeks at Peterborough Crown Court on Monday, September 23, after pleading guilty to two counts to fraud.

Detective Constable Mikala Chambers said: "This was a huge breach of trust by Shelton who had been trusted to withdraw cash to pay bills and buy groceries.

But Shelton decided to keep the money herself then even tried to pass the blame onto her father when she was caught.

Shelton took advantage of the victim's vulnerability and I'm pleased she has been brought to justice."