Jailed: Oswestry gambling addict who stole £17,000 from grandparents
A gambling addict from Oswestry stole nearly £17,000 from his grandparents to feed his habit.
Graham Thomas raided the bank account of Moira and William Benyon and took nearly half of their life savings between February and July last year after finding their card and pin number in his grandmother's bag.
He was jailed for 18 months by Judge Robin Onions at Shrewsbury Crown Court yesterday after pleading guilty to two offences of fraud.
The court heard Thomas, 30, had lived with his grandparents in Porth-y-Waen, Oswestry, for nearly 10 years.
Miss Samantha Powis, prosecuting, said the defendant's mother, Olwyn Sides, discovered money was missing from her parents' account.
Three separate transactions of £4,000, £6,000 and £4,000 saw monies transferred eventually into father-of-one Thomas's account, the court heard.
He also took £2,524 by withdrawing cash from ATMs on a number of occasions between February and March last year using his grandparents' bank card.
In total £16,526.98 was taken, Miss Powis told the court.
Mr Andrew Holland, for Thomas, said his client was fully aware of the effect the offending had on his family, and said he was hoping to meet his grandparents face-to-face after his release to personally apologise.
"He has a gambling habit and was moving from job to job," Mr Holland said.
"He sought an easy way of finding some money and came across the bank card.
"He has sought help and counselling for his gambling problems."
Sentencing him, Judge Onions said: "It's difficult to understand really how you could behave like this. The victims of your offending are your grandparents, who have looked after you and provided you with a home for 10 years.
"You owed them such a debt of gratitude, you owed them loyalty, you should have looked after them, not abused their trust.
"You made your addiction their problem."
He added: "I am led to believe the amount you took represented 40 per cent of their life savings; that has simply been wasted to fund your addiction to gambling.
"This offence is right up there in my experience in its meanness, its abuse of trust. I hope you are thoroughly ashamed of yourself.
"I hope your shame and your memory of committing this offence lives with you for the rest of your life."
A proceeds of crime hearing later this year will determine if Thomas has to repay any of the money to his grandparents, the court heard.
