A carer has been found guilty of stealing from an elderly lady with Alzheimer’s after she was caught on a hidden camera shoving a £10 note in her bra.

Wandsworth Times:

Sarah Leacy, 33, from Tildesley Road, Putney, was found guilty of theft, in breach of trust, after she was secretly filmed stealing £10 notes from Monica Flanagan, 90, from Putney.

The victim’s children Annemarie Key, Eileen Flanagan and Stephen Flanagan, installed a small camera in their mum’s home after they noticed money going missing from a secure cash box in the kitchen. The box was locked by a key that was hidden in a separate location.

Leacy was found guilty of two counts of theft at Wimbledon Magistrates' Court on Thursday, December 4. Ms Key told us after the court case one of their videos caught Leacy stuffing a £10 note under her bra strap.

During both incidents, on June 13 and July 7 this year, two £10 notes were taken by Leacy. She denied everything in police interview, swearing on her nan and granddad’s ashes she had never taken cash out of the box.

However, the court heard Leacy completely changed her story when police told her she had been caught on CCTV.

She then claimed she had bought milk, bread and toilet cleaner for her client and gave Mrs Flanagan the leftover change to put in her purse.

Giving evidence Mr Flanagan said: “I left £30 cash in there, on June 11. A couple of days later, on June 13, I found £20 in the box.

“On July 7, again I checked the box. There was £35 in there and when I checked the box later that day £10 was missing.

“Quite a lot of material we were buying for her went missing at the time as well.”

Her children kept receipts in the box and all knew exactly how much was in there and when things had been bought for their mum.

Prosecutor Philip Sutton said: “The prosecution would like to draw your attention to the fact that when Miss Leacy was taxed about the matter she had no recollection but when she saw the CCTV there was an admission and indeed the extent of detail.

“No note was left inside the box to say ‘I had to take money’ or change. It is unlikely on both occasions that exactly £10 was spent.”

Leacy had been Mrs Flanagan’s regular carer since October 2013. She would spend 45 minutes with her, make her a sandwich, a cup of tea and give her medication. She told the court she only took the money to buy things for Mrs Flanagan.

Wandsworth Times:

Leacy with the key that was hidden in a separate location 

When asked why she initially denied taking money Leacy started to cry in the dock and said: “I was frightened. I was scared. My head was all over the place. I didn’t know what I was saying.”

She said she had been humiliated when police arrested her in the street and added: “I was there to help a client out. I’m not some kind of thief. I would never do that.”

Wandsworth Times:

Leacy takes the cash box out of the cupboard

District judge James Henderson said: “It seems strange to me that if the money had been taken and used quite legitimately that it would be so dramatically forgotten.

“I’m driven to conclude and I’m driven to infer it really isn’t possible for the [police] interview to have progressed in the way that it did with flat denial and acceptance. It cannot be that was genuine forgetfulness and I’m driven to conclude Miss Leacy did steal the two amounts of £10. I find both charges proved.”