Brighton carer who stole from dying pensioner ordered to repay victims

Kelly Constable, 48, of Cheapside, Brighton, was sentenced to three years for theft and possession of cocaine, at Lewes Crown Court in July 2020, confirmed police.

She took jewellery worth £15,000, including gifts from her victim’s Christening and a piece which had been with her family since 1802, according to police.

A spokesman said: “Constable had been trusted as a carer but when the lady, in her eighties, went into hospital, Constable let herself into her home and took the valuables.

“She stole the keys from around the neck of an elderly man as he slept and took money from his safe worth £5,000.

“She also stole from two other residents of a care home where she worked.”

After a hearing at Lewes Crown Court on 4 May this year, she was given an Order under the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) to begin paying back the money, an initially available £2,935, within three months.

If she does not pay she will be liable to serve another month in prison, and will still have to pay.

And if police identify further assets she has or acquires, they can obtain Orders for that to be confiscated too.

Detective Inspector Mark O’Brien of the Sussex Police Economic Crime Unit said: “These Orders come from continued hard work by our officers, in particular our expert financial investigators.

“Wherever possible we now target not just the criminals but also the profits of their crimes, whether they are from drug dealing or any other form of criminal activity.

“It can take time but each investigation results in an application for a court-authorised Order.

“Assets currently available are sometimes less than the amount originally stolen but we keep records of all confiscation orders where the full benefit amount isn’t immediately available and have means of regularly checking to identify any additional assets which have been obtained since the original order was made.

“We can then apply to the court for an increase in the original order.

“We can also seek the help of the South East Regional Asset Confiscation Enforcement (ACE) team, part of the South East Regional Organised Crime Unit (SEROCU) who carry out further work to identify more assets.”