Thief stole £44,000 belonging to elderly dementia sufferer who he entrusted to buy shopping

Anthony Owen was found guilty by a jury of withdrawing money from 82-year-old Michael Hudson’s account on 175 separate occasions over a near three year period.

Bolton Crown Court was told that Owen had befriended neighbour Mr Hudson about 20 years ago.

More recently he had asked Mr Hudson if he could park his van on his drive, and offered to help with his shopping in return.

Owen, of Highbridge Close, Breightmet, would take Mr Hudson to a cash point to withdraw money to pay for groceries, which Owen would then buy and take him home again.

Mr Hudson said he told Owen his PIN number as he could not withdraw the money himself because he had difficulty with his eyesight, which was so bad that he could not walk without assistance as he would bump into things.

In interviews with police in 2011, Mr Hudson said that the shopping would only cost about £30 or £40, and that he entrusted Owen with withdrawing the money. But Owen took an average of between £200 and £300 each time.

He also said that he asked Owen, aged 56, to arrange for his electricity bills to be paid.

Owen would then pocket the difference of the money he had taken out, the court heard.

The court was told that Mr Hudson was admitted to hospital in 2011, and that he was deemed to not be fit to return home, so moved into Mill View Residential Care Home, in Bridgeman Street, Bolton.

However, before he moved to the care home, he returned home as he was worried about his bank card, and could not find it after searching the house.

But between September 2008 and March 2011, Owen left Mr Hudson's bank accounts almost bare following the thefts.

In April 2011, Mr Hudson was alerted to the amount of money being taken from his account by the bank, after staff became concerned that a large number of transactions were being made.

Owen will be sentenced on June 4, and a Proceeds of Crime Act hearing aimed at recovering the money stolen will also be held.