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A "carer" who drained an elderly woman's bank account and altered her will to benefit her has been given a suspended sentence.

Janet Rutt, 56, stole thousands of pounds from her victim and dishonestly gained power of attorney over her affairs.

Travelling from her home in Middlesbrough, she visited the woman in South Yorkshire and used the stolen money to fund her own lifestyle.

Rutt was given a two-year prison sentence, suspended for two years, at Sheffield Crown Court on Tuesday.

Rutt told police she visited the victim up to three times a week to provide care, but officers were able to use Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras to prove she had not been making the journeys as often as she claimed to.

Police discovered Rutt had plundered both the victim's savings and pension, and had cancelled the delivery of bank statements to her home to hide what was happening.

She had also exaggerated the woman's vulnerability to social services so that she could be granted power of attorney and arranged for a will to be written naming Rutt as the main beneficiary.

After the victim's nephew challenged Rutt over the missing money Rutt wrote to the victim telling her to sell her house and move in with her, saying that as she had power of attorney she could override any decision she made.

South Yorkshire Police were contacted when the woman realised her birth and marriage certificates were missing, with the documents later found in Rutt's home.

PC Lynn Robins said: “Throughout this investigation, Rutt showed no remorse for her actions, thinking that a power of attorney position gave her entitlement to take whatever she liked for her own personal gain.

"The victim gave a detailed account of what had been going on, at a time when she needed people she could trust around her. Rutt abused that trust, hoping nobody would ever find out. However, the hard work of our forensic accountant highlighted the true scale of Rutt’s actions."

The force said the victim had since died.

Rutt, of Tebay Close, Middlesbrough, pleaded guilty to fraud by abuse of position.

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