Daughter stole £80k from mum with dementia and blew it on holidays and lingerie

The brother of a woman who stole £80,000 from their mum who has dementia said: “My sister is dead to me.”

Karen Wakeling, 47, siphoned off cash from 81-year-old Pat Cordon’s life savings over a 10-year period.

She was only arrested after bank staff raised concerns the pensioner’s account had been used to buy X-rated items from adult store Ann Summers.

Detectives found the stolen cash was also spent on a luxury car, holidays, Bravissimo lingerie, beauty treatments and a 40th birthday party at a hotel.

Former Tesco worker Wakeling, whose husband Carl, 51, is now divorcing her, has been jailed for two years after a jury convicted her of fraud.

Wakeling stole from her elderly mother, Pat Cordon

Her brother Andy Cordon, 51, told the Mirror: “I didn’t suspect for one minute a family member would do what she has done.

“Karen wanted a lifestyle she wasn’t prepared to work for. What she has done is despicable.

“She has not once apologised and still believes she has done nothing wrong.”

He added: “I just feel sorry for Mum. She knows what her daughter has done but it’s hard for her to understand.

“This has split my family in two – my sister is dead to me.”

Wakeling and sister Debbie were given power of attorney over Pat’s affairs following her 2009 dementia diagnosis.

Brother Andy Cordon said he would never have suspected his sister could steal from their mum

Bus driver Andy, who lives with widow Pat in Hunstanton, Norfolk, says his sister started by taking out small amounts.

But, over the years, the part-time supermarket worker started spending more and more from the account.

Norwich crown court heard Wakeling blew the cash on a luxury lifestyle but also on groceries, nights out with friends, a LoveFilm subscription and paying off credit card bills.

Prosecutor Chris Youell said Wakeling, of Hunstanton, used Pat’s account to pay for a lavish 40th birthday party.

He added: “Her mother was not invited... but ended up paying for it.”

Wakeling, 47, has been jailed for two years over the fraud (East Anglia News Service)

Wakeling’s husband Carl, who asked her to leave the family home last year, said: “The bank spotted that Karen had been making quite a few purchases at Ann Summers and it showed up on one of Pat’s statements.

“That was the red flag and police were called in.”

Carl says Wakeling, mum to Alex, 17, and Elysia, 18, spent the majority of the cash enjoying 15 holidays abroad by herself.

He added: “The sickening part is that she did this to her own mum – she spent 10 years enjoying herself with Pat’s money.

“For me, it’s the lies that hurt most.”