JAILED: New Cross Hospital healthcare assistant stole thousands from seriously ill patients

Marie Taylor stole from five people being treated in the acute medical unit at Wolverhampton's New Cross Hospital between March and November last year.

Wallets and purses with bank cards inside were taken from close to their beds while the targeted individuals had either been moved away for treatment or were asleep and in no condition to notice that the item was missing.

Two of the victims have since passed away.

The total stolen was £9,312.70, while Taylor also tried to take a further £3,348.77.

The 32-year-old thief used one of the cards to try to book a £3,000-plus holiday for her family on Greek island of Zante but the bid backfired when Thomas Cook staff spotted the card she used had somebody else's name on it.

Suspected

Banks suspected that some of the cards had been used fraudulently but any warning letters sent to those involved are likely to have remained unopened since the victims were seriously unwell in hospital.

Mr Jason Aris, prosecuting, said in November last year the matter came to light when the daughter of a victim contacted the police to tell them her 84-year-old father's bank card had been used while he was receiving chemotherapy for cancer in the unit.

The victim was in hospital between November 2 and 3 and on the second day his daughter received a call from her father's bank to say his card had been used at McDonald's and Sainsbury's in Bentley Bridge as well as £394.06 spent online.

Police seized CCTV and images were shown to a senior staff member at the hospital who was able to identify the defendant and the card was recovered from the defendant's home address, Mr Aris added.

Another victim was in the unit between February and March last year and her card was taken and used in a variety of stores including Sainsbury's, Simply Be and Just Eat, to the value of £238.88.

But by the time the investigation had begun the victim had died, Mr Aris told Wolverhampton Crown Court.

The defendant then stole the deceased victim's husband's card when he was being treated at the same unit for cancer just months later. He has also since passed away, the court was told.

Fraudulent transactions of more than £8,000 were discovered by his step daughter, including clothing, a mobile and a car.

And a 61-year-old woman who was blind in one eye, partially sighted in the other, hard of hearing and suffering from Type 1 diabetes was also targeted by Taylor.

'Fraudulent'

"She was contacted by her bank to inform her someone had tried to book a holiday with Thomas Cook to the value of £3,048.77," Mr Aris said.

"There were several fraudulent transactions, including at Asda, Sainsbury's and McDonald's."

An 88-year-old dementia sufferer was also targeted by Taylor, who withdrew £250 in cash from her bank and further attempts for £300 were unsuccessful.

Miss Kate McCreath, defending, said the thefts were "opportunistic, not sophisticated".

She added: "She shows great remorse for her behaviour and accepts they were vulnerable. She suffers from anxiety and depression."

Taylor, from Plym Close, Wednesfield, was given a caution in 2006 for theft by an employee but used a different name meaning it would not have shown up on checks when she applied to work at New Cross Hospital in August 2011.

She admitted 17 offences of either theft or fraud when she previously appeared at Wolverhampton Crown Court and was handed two years and eight months in prison by Judge Rhonda Campbell on Tuesday.

Judge Campbell said: "The offences you have committed are breathtaking in their callousness.

"To target the most vulnerable in society reveals a heartlessness which is intensified by the fact that your victims were not just ill but in some cases on death's door.

"You used their cards and they were so incapacitated they didn't know what you were doing."

Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust Chief Operating Officer Gwen Nuttall said: “We have a zero tolerance approach to crime and a robust Trust policy to make sure our patients and their belongings are safe, and that our security measures are strong and regularly assessed.

"Thankfully, such criminal acts are very rare and do not reflect our extremely hard working and highly professional staff.

"As soon as we were made aware of a potential crime the member of staff was suspended, and subsequently dismissed from duties.”