Bingo Player Steals £5k from Elderly Mother

15 March 2016

Gambling stops being fun when it involves dishonesty and this story is an example of a player that has gone too far. A 94-year-old woman suffers from dementia and one would think that she could trust family but her daughter, 61-year-old Margaret Henderson, withdrew £5,000 of her money to gamble on online bingo games. If you can’t trust your daughter, who can you trust?

Henderson funneled cash from her mother’s account for nearly two years after gaining control of her financial affairs. She pled guilty in Falkirk Sheriff Court last Thursday to stealing from her mum between January 1, 2013 and October 3, 2014.

Siobhan Monks, procurator fiscal depute, said, “It was noticed her mother’s payments for care expenses were in arrears. Social workers made some inquiries and realised other charges had not been paid, including council tax.

“A care worker reviewed the bank statements and saw a number of transactions that didn’t seem consistent with a 94-year-old lady with dementia.

“During the period £5000 had been withdrawn from the account by the accused. It was spent on a variety of online gambling sites. She admitted she was a compulsive gambler and had been spending her mum’s money.”

Henderson’s legal counsel told the court how she suffered due to her mother’s dementia as she watched her become worse over time and Henderson dealt with a condition of her

Defense lawyer, William McIntyre said, “She watched her mother’s condition deteriorate and became very depressed. She suffers from agoraphobia and found herself housebound.

“For some reason she saw an outlet in the internet and became addicted to online gambling and online bingo in particular. She used the money she took from her mother’s account to rack up some serious losses.

“She is pleased in a way the matter came to light and is going to pay her family back, She is no longer in charge of her mother’s financial affairs, but still sees her every day.”

Henderson’s punishment? She was placed on a community payback order as long as she completes 150 hours of unpaid work within a 6 month period.