A former nurse at an Aberdeenshire care home has dodged prison despite enjoying a near £1,000 shopping spree at the expense of two elderly residents.
Sharon Gillan was instead ordered to carry out 220 hours of unpaid work after she admitted taking their bank cards and spending more than £880.
The 58-year-old had fallen into financial difficulties while working at Stonehaven’s Havencourt Nursing Home and “exploited her trusted position”, Aberdeen Sheriff Court was told.
She stole a first cash card and splashed out in a number of shops in Stonehaven, Portlethen and Newtonhill between September 25 and October 3 last year.
The spree in the likes of supermarkets Asda, Tesco and Farmfoods ran up a bill worth £735.73.
She then slipped the card back where she had taken it from, hoping no-one would notice her theft.
But the family of her 77-year-old victim quickly noticed the suspicious activity and reported it to the bank.
Gillan stole a second card from a 98-year-old resident and had racked up a bill of £144.27 by the time the victim’s children noticed the card was missing.
Police identified her from CCTV footage taken in Stonehaven’s Semi-Chem and Co-Op.
Defence agent Gregor Kelly said his client had felt “slighted” as she had previously been promised a permanent role at the care home.
He added: “She is remorseful at having breached her employer’s trust and realises her behaviour was wrong.”
Gillan had no previous history of crime and Mr Kelly urged sheriff Andrew Miller to consider an alternative punishment to prison.
Sentencing her to hundreds of hours of unpaid work, Sheriff Miller told Gillan: “You exploited the trust of those placing their care in your hands on a daily basis.”