Carer who stole £17k from home's residents jailed

A care home worker who admitted stealing more than £17,000 from residents has been jailed for two years.

Cheryl Louise Pratt, 35, a senior support worker at a home in York, transferred funds from the accounts of five residents into fake online accounts before moving the cash into her own account and spending it on gambling websites and takeaway food, according to North Yorkshire Police.

Pratt, of Byland Avenue, York, pleaded guilty to five counts of fraud between August 2020 and September 2021 and was sentenced on Tuesday at York Crown Court.

After sentencing, Det Con Oliver Dalby said Pratt's victims had been left "utterly devastated" by her actions.

Pratt had deliberately targeted "elderly and vulnerable residents", North Yorkshire Police said.

However, the fraud was discovered after the brother of one of the victims noticed unexpected activity on his sister's bank account.

When interviewed, Pratt told police all the cash withdrawals had been made with the account holder's permission.

But officers said a doctor had given evidence that none of the victims would have been able to provide true consent for anyone to take money from their accounts.

Following her conviction, Det Con Dalby described her crimes as "cold, cruel and calculated".

"As a senior carer, she knew which residents would be the most vulnerable to financial exploitation and these were the people she targeted," she said.

"She abused her position, disregarding her duty to safeguard the care home residents in pursuit of her own self-interest.

"The victims and her former colleagues have been left utterly devastated by her actions, and it is right she faces the consequences of her crimes."

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