July 25th 2024.
The family of a woman was taken aback when they discovered that she had stolen over £100,000 from her mother, who suffered from dementia. This woman, named Hayley Matthews, had been using the money to indulge in a lavish lifestyle. The shocking truth came to light when other family members began questioning the size of Matthews' estate after her mother passed away in 2021 while under hospital care in Edinburgh. It was then revealed that Matthews had been embezzling money from her mother's bank accounts for over three years, from September 2019 to November 2022.
Matthews, who had previously worked as a presenter on STV, pleaded guilty to the charge of embezzlement at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on June 27. She was sentenced to two years and three months in prison on Thursday at the same court. Lynne Barrie, procurator fiscal for Lothian and Borders, expressed that Matthews had been entrusted with her mother's financial affairs but instead chose to exploit the situation for her own gain. She used her power of attorney to steal thousands of pounds and live a luxurious lifestyle without any regard for her mother's wellbeing.
During the trial, it was revealed that Matthews had told her family that her mother's estate was worth £36,000. However, her sister became suspicious and decided to request copies of their mother's financial statements from the bank. It was then discovered that there had been a significant increase in ATM cash withdrawals between September 2019 and September 2021, during the time when their mother was admitted to the hospital. This prompted a police investigation, which found that Matthews had spent a total of £42,763 through 371 transactions on PayPal, as well as large sums of money on ATM withdrawals, Amazon purchases, and luxury items from retailers such as Harvey Nichols, Kurt Geiger, and Molton Brown.
When Matthews' father, Alistair, confronted her in January 2022, she confessed to using the money for her own personal gain. In a series of text messages, she admitted that she had not handled her mother's money and paperwork properly and had spent more than she should have. She also mentioned that she was not in a good place while caring for her mother, but she tried her best. This case serves as a reminder that those who take advantage of vulnerable individuals for their own benefit will be held accountable for their actions. It is a lesson that greed and deceit will not go unpunished.
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