A thief is facing jail after swindling her 87-year-old neighbour out of nearly £28,000.
The Manchester Evening News reports that Amara Ahmed, 24, lived next door to her elderly victim in Fallowfield, a suburb of Manchester, and had known her all her life.
Ahmed spent years stealing from the woman who had treated her “like a daughter” and used to take her to school as a child, a court heard.
But when Ahmed got access to the vulnerable pensioner’s bank account, she swindled £27,880 over almost four years.
She spent the money on clothes, flowers and other items online. Some of the goods were delivered to Ahmed’s victim next door, who unwittingly signed for them, unaware it was her money which paid for the items.
Ahmed could now face prison after admitting theft between November 2012 and August 2016.
The theft occurred in hundreds of separate transactions and Ahmed continued until August last year when she was caught.
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Prosecuting, Robin Lynch said: “The victim was her next door neighbour, who she had known all her life. She described her as like a daughter to her. The Crown say she has been targeted because of her vulnerability. The defendant took out money systematically in hundreds of transactions from the victim’s account, moving it from one account to another. She had access to the accounts as she was a trusted next door neighbour.”
However, the court was told that Ahmed has since repaid the money she stole in full. Defending, Adrian Palmer admitted that the incident represented a “gross breach of trust,” and that she could face a custodial sentence.
Addressing the defendant, District Judge Nicholas Sanders said: “The matter is to serious to be sentenced in this court. You will get credit for your early guilty plea in due course.”
