A carer addicted to gambling who stole almost \u00a310,000 from a vulnerable man was given the chance to avoid court by paying it back \u2013 but despite failing to cough up a penny has now been spared jail.<\/p>\n
Sarah Defriend repeatedly used the bank card of a man suffering from schizophrenia to withdraw cash from ATMs over a two-year period, using the money to fund her addiction and cover personal expenses.<\/p>\n
Sarah Defriend, from Dover, stole almost \u00a310,000 from a highly vulnerable man she was caring for. Picture: Facebook<\/p>\n
Despite admitting taking \u00a39,650 from her victim, who lacked the capacity to manage his own finances, the 50-year-old was initially handed a conditional caution by police, with the requirement that she repay the cash.<\/p>\n
But when she failed to do so by the September 5 deadline last year, Defriend, of Buckland Avenue, Dover, was charged with fraud by abuse of position.<\/p>\n
Yet despite still not having repaid a penny \u2013 even after enjoying a “substantial” gambling win \u2013 she was spared an immediate prison sentence after pleading guilty to her heartless crimes.<\/p>\n
Furthermore, at her sentencing hearing on Wednesday, she was told she would only have to pay her victim \u00a32,000 compensation.<\/p>\n
Defriend appeared to be crying as she sat in the dock at Canterbury Crown Court while her barrister described her as “totally consumed by shame”.<\/p>\n
Prosecutor Emily Arnott told the sentencing hearing that between March 2023 and March last year, Defriend had been working at a residential care home where the victim’s bank card was kept in a safe.<\/p>\n
The court heard Defriend repeatedly accessed his card without his knowledge or consent to withdraw cash for herself.<\/p>\n
However, when a colleague set up online banking, they spotted discrepancies in the man’s account.<\/p>\n
“While the defendant was his key worker, she repeatedly used his bank card without consent, including withdrawing cash for her own benefit,” said Ms Arnott.<\/p>\n
“Of \u00a310,000 unaccounted for, \u00a39,650 represented cash withdrawn from nearby ATMs.”<\/p>\n
Sarah Defriend was given a chance to avoid prosecution by paying the money back \u2013\u00a0but did not cough up a penny<\/p>\n
The court heard Defriend then covered her tracks by writing up the spending in the victim’s personal finance sheet.<\/p>\n
Ms Arnott continued: “When interviewed, she admitted using his bank card without consent and accepted all the relevant withdrawals were for her benefit.<\/p>\n
“She was in debt and used the money for personal expenses and for gambling.<\/p>\n
“She abused a professional position of trust and targeted a highly vulnerable victim over a considerable period.”<\/p>\n
Following her police interview and having admitted responsibility, Defriend was given the conditional caution – an official, out-of-court alternative to a criminal prosecution and when the offender agrees to follow specific rules or conditions for a set period.<\/p>\n
In Defriend’s case it was to repay the money she stole, and any failure to comply without reasonable excuse can result, as here, with charge and prosecution for the original crime.<\/p>\n
As well as not abiding by her condition, the court heard she also benefitted from a gambling win – believed to be in the thousands – but still did not hand any money over to the victim.<\/p>\n
However, her lawyer, Emily Mattin, told the court that the defendant had now cleared her own debts, taken steps to address her addiction, and saved \u00a31,000 from her universal credit and by selling personal belongings to compensate him.<\/p>\n
She also has work prospects in both a friend’s DIY shop and helping to set up small businesses that could provide further reimbursement, she said.<\/p>\n
Arguing that a suspended sentence could be imposed, Ms Mattin urged: “This was undoubtedly a serious breach of trust and the defendant accepts that entirely.<\/p>\n
“You may see she is in some distress today. That is not self-pity and she is totally consumed by her own shame.<\/p>\n
“Being a carer was more than a job. It was something she loved and was a privilege. She knows and understands she has betrayed the values that led her into caring work.<\/p>\n
Sarah Defriend was spared jail when she was sentenced at Canterbury Crown Court<\/p>\n
“But this was an isolated offence committed against the backdrop of very difficult personal difficulties.<\/p>\n
“I don’t suggest that is in any way an excuse but they do provide important context. She is a woman for whom a custodial sentence would uproot her life.”<\/p>\n
A probation report prepared for the sentencing hearing deemed Defriend to be a low risk of reoffending and someone who could be managed in the community, added Ms Mattin.<\/p>\n
Being allowed to keep her freedom would also ensure she could “continue her efforts to pay back every penny she owes”, she concluded.<\/p>\n
The court heard the former carer had also registered with online self-exclusion scheme, Gamstop, to tackle her addiction.<\/p>\n
Passing sentence, Judge Sarah Counsell told Defriend she had “some hesitation” in sparing her a spell behind bars.<\/p>\n
“This was a very serious offence. You deliberately abused a professional position of trust,” she said.<\/p>\n
“You targeted a person who was especially vulnerable and unable to protect his own interests. Your offending was repeated and sustained over some time.<\/p>\n
“In your favour you are a woman of 50, of previous good character and entered an early guilty plea.<\/p>\n
“You have expressed remorse and acknowledged the gravity of your actions. I also take account of the favourable character references provided to the court and the support of many of your family and friends.”<\/p>\n
But, in a passing reference to Defriend’s gambling success since the offending, the judge continued: “I have, however, borne in mind the probation officer’s observation that despite obtaining funds through your own substantial gambling win, you made no repayment to the victim as required under your conditional caution.”<\/p>\n
On whether she could spare Defriend immediate imprisonment, Judge Counsell explained that under the Sentencing Act 2026 there was now a statutory presumption that any jail term of 12 months or less is to be suspended except in exceptional circumstances.<\/p>\n
I have, however, borne in mind the probation officer’s observation that despite obtaining funds through your own substantial gambling win, you made no repayment to the victim as required under your conditional caution…<\/p>\n
These include an offender already in custody or on remand, consecutive sentences totalling more than 12 months, when the offending was committed while the defendant was subject to an active court order, or specific risks such as serious harm.<\/p>\n
The judge therefore told her: “Detention sentences are often appropriate for this type of offending, and it is often the case that the only appropriate punishment for someone behaving in a gross breach of trust is an immediate custodial sentence\u200b.<\/p>\n
“However, there are no exceptional circumstances in this case that allow that, and there is a realistic prospect of rehabilitation with a low risk of reoffending.<\/p>\n
“It is for those reasons, although not without some hesitation, I conclude it is appropriate to suspend your sentence of imprisonment.”<\/p>\n
Defriend was handed a 12-month jail term suspended for 18 months. In that time she will be subject to what is now known as a probation requirement – formerly rehabilitation activity requirements – and will have to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work.<\/p>\n
On the issue of compensation, Judge Counsell said she could not order her to pay in full due to her limited financial means.<\/p>\n
But she said the \u00a31,000 already saved must be paid within 28 days, and a further \u00a31,000 within two years.<\/p>\n
Concluding the hearing, she then told Defriend: “I don’t want to see you back at court. Comply with the order and do all that punitive work.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A carer addicted to gambling who stole almost \u00a310,000 from a vulnerable man was given the chance to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":657986,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[782,737,189233,163,85,46,16223,522,523,634],"class_list":["post-657985","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-mental-health","tag-courts","tag-crime","tag-dover","tag-health","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-kent","tag-mental-health","tag-mentalhealth","tag-syndicate"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/657985","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=657985"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/657985\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/657986"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=657985"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=657985"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=657985"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}