Many of you may have come across this story in the national newspapers recently, but we thought we'd discuss the case ourselves as we found the details of it so astounding. According to The Telegraph, Trudy Collins, 44, has admitted to accessing and spending around £20,000 of her daughter's inheritance, bequeathed to her by her late father.
The victim's father had separated from Collins but sadly passed away in 2013, leaving around £90,000 to be split equally between Denvar Bathie – the daughter in question – and two other siblings. Bathie banked around £20,000 of her £30,000 share.
Bathie, 23, had planned to use some of the inheritance to pay for her upcoming nuptials and also for a deposit on a house – she had also been saving around £200 a month extra from her salary to add to the total. However, she agreed to let her mother look after the card and pin for the money so that she may not be tempted to spend it, it is reported.
Collins then used the card and pin to access the sum on 173 separate occasions and spent the money on various things, including holidays, pampering sessions, shopping trips and visits to the cinema. Collins was on holiday in Egypt when the unusual activity was brought to the attention of her daughter.
Bathie called the police when it transpired that her mother had spent over £19,000 of the money. Bathie is quoted as saying: "I trusted my mother more than anyone else and I believed her every word but the trust disappeared there and then, I was betrayed and heartbroken. She went behind my back spending my savings which was my future."
Collins was given a 12 month jail term suspended for two years. She has also been ordered to complete 150 hours of unpaid work and is subject to a monitored curfew for three months.
Do you think this sentence is in keeping with the extent of the crime?