A dishonest handyman who stole a pensioner’s bank card after carrying out work at her home has been jailed.
Brian Ward took advantage of the 74-year-old woman after she handed over her bank card and pin number in good faith, Aberdeen Sheriff Court was told.
Instead of completing the chip and pin transaction in his van as promised, the 30-year-old drove off.
Fiscal depute Andrew McMann told the court that Ward went on to withdraw £500 at the Coop food store in Newmachar.
‘Distracted’ victim handed over card
He said Ward, alongside another man, had carried out grass-cutting and guttering jobs at the pensioner’s house and she had intended to pay by bank card.
“The accused advised her he had a chip and pin machine in his van,” he said. “At that time a Tesco delivery van had been present causing the complainer to be distracted.
“She handed him a bank card and a note with the pin for her card. In possession of that card, the men left in their van.
“Thereafter, prior to the complainer being able to cancel her card, the accused attended at the Coop in Newmachar and managed to withdraw £500 in cash.”
He then tried to take out another £350 there and a further £500 from the post office under the same roof, but those withdrawals were rejected after the woman contacted her bank just in time.
When police traced him the following day – July 31 2020 – he was driving while disqualified and uninsured in Aberdeen city centre.
Ward is currently serving a five-and-a-half-year prison term in his native Northern Ireland for similar crimes.
Has previous for similar crimes
Appearing from custody, Ward admitted a charge of theft from an ATM, attempted theft, driving while disqualified and driving without insurance.
Defence agent Kevin Longino said his client had been “egged on” by the man he was working with and that the offence was “very opportunistic”.
He claimed Ward gained nothing from the theft because the other man, who has not been prosecuted, made off with the cash.
“He didn’t have any of the money,” the solicitor added. “He didn’t personally gain from this because the other individual took the cash and effectively disappeared at that point.
“He was left along with the vehicle which gave rise to him driving while disqualified.
‘He was desperate for money’
“Things clearly didn’t proceed well for him in lockdown. He had lost a job and he was desperate for money to support his wife.”
There’s been no recovery of the money or repayment to the victim, the court heard.
Sheriff Andrew Wallace, jailed Ward, usually of Stewartson Road, Coalisland, Northern Ireland, for six months.
That sentence will start at the end of his current prison term in Northern Ireland, in March 2024 at the earliest.
Ward was also banned from driving for 45 months.
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