Cruel daughter who stole £216k from Alzheimer’s sufferer mum to splurge on her two dogs and luxury holiday is jailed
A CRUEL daughter who stole £216,000 from her Alzheimer’s sufferer mum to splurge on her two dogs has been jailed.
Luana Dougherty had already been given a £125,000 share of Margaret Trimmer’s home when she drained the pensioner’s life savings.
The care worker, 50, spent the cash on pampering her Staffordshire Bull Terrier-type dogs and luxury furniture.
Dougherty also splurged on a holiday in India and used the money to set up her own dog breeding business.
Her evil crimes were only exposed when she bragged to her son about putting a £60,000 deposit on a house.
Her suspicious relatives then made enquiries with Margaret’s bank, who discovered Dougherty had been stealing the cash.
Just £10,000 was left in her mum’s account by the time Dougherty’s callous scheme was uncovered.
The mum-of-three has now been jailed for four years after admitting fraud by abuse of position.
Chester Crown Court heard Dougherty had offered to look after her mum, who is in her 80s, when she developed Alzheimer’s.
Margaret moved into her daughter’s home in June 2021 after selling her house in Farnham, Surrey, for £370,000.
Despite Dougherty receiving a large wedge of cash from the sale, the greedy care worker chose to exploit her elderly mother.
She set up a bank account in Margaret’s name and began transferring huge sums of money to her own account.
The court heard over the space of four days, Dougherty sent herself £80,000 as though she was “taking candy from a baby”.
When her sister’s husband contacted the bank, the family were horrified to discover £216,000 had been drained from the account.
They confronted Dougherty, who admitted spending most of the money on her pets, holidays, cars and a number of other items.
In a victim impact statement, sister Sandra Clayton said her mum was “anxious and distressed” when she discovered her daughter’s stealing.
She also told how the family feels “foolish” for trusting Dougherty to look after Margaret.
Sandra added: “My mother’s money would have provided the best possible care for her. But the financial impact has meant we had no choice in a type of care home she would move into.
“We are reliant on the local authority council to choose that place for her and top up £100 a week for mum’s care.
“Luana has not asked how she is, where she lives, or offered to pay any money. We have not received any money from her.
“She had showed no care or concern and had used her for what she could get out of her. She had no regard for the consequences, leaving us to pick up the pieces.”
Sentencing, judge Mr Richard Conley slammed Dougherty for her “uncaring and callous attitude” towards her crimes.
He also hit out after the court heard she has managed to keep her job in the care sector despite her thievery.
The judge added: “‘You decided to exploit the position you were in and through greed and selfishness you continued to siphon off Mrs Trimmer’s money. It was like taking candy from a baby.
”It was a cynical exploitation of her and of the trust that she and your sister and wider members of your family placed in you.
“Day after day, time after time, there were financial transfers running up to £1000s, if not £10,000s, all to be fritted away by you on dogs, drugs, hare brained business ideas, or just profligacy on your behalf.
“It is clear to me that this was selfishness on an epic scale committed by you, against a person who relied on you and trusted you more than anyone else in the world.”