Thetford: Man Jailed For Four Years

30 November 2012, 10:47

A man's been sentenced to 4 years in prison after he stole over £63,000 from one of his relatives.

Colin Bloom, aged 46 and of Monksgate in Thetford, had agreed with other family members to share a house with his elderly father in law whilst at the same time providing him with a standard of care, needed following health issues in 1991, which had been previously been undertaken by the victim's wife.  The victim had agreed, supported by his children.  As the years passed, the victim's son, who had power of attorney noticed that large amounts of money were being taken from the victim's bank account.  By the time the victim died in 2010, and despite having a regular monthly income of over a thousand pounds and very little apparent outgoings, only £400 was left in his bank account. 

In interview Colin Bloom admitted that he had made all withdrawals from his father in law's bank account but could not give an explanation for them except to say that his father in law was expensive to support.   

DC Gemma Weeks, who led the investigation, welcomed the conviction saying: "The systematic draining of an elderly relative's bank account is an extreme abuse of trust.  This was an abhorrent crime which was rightfully reported to us so that it could be investigated extensively".