A Moray woman has gone on trial accused of stealing more than £80,000 from her mother.
Pearl Dewar is accused of stealing the cash from her mother Jane Gall’s bank account over a six-year period.
The 63-year-old denies the charge, and told Elgin Sheriff Court yesterday her mother had “ridiculous spending habits”.
Giving evidence on her own behalf, Dewar said she had spent much of the money on groceries for her mother, who had “a lot of guests”.
Dewar, of Seafield Street, Portknockie, is accused of stealing £82,000 from Mrs Gall’s Lloyds TSB account between January 1, 2007 and November 30, 2013.
The trial began earlier this week, but was delayed after a member of the jury fell ill and had to be replaced.
The court heard Dewar had previously worked in Peterhead Prison, helping prisoners learn how to balance their budgets after their release.
Yesterday, she told the jury she spent thousands of pounds every year on groceries for her mum, who lives alone.
Dewar – who referred to her mother as “Mrs Gall” throughout her evidence – said the octogenarian developed an obsession with spending as she got older.
She said that when she was placed in charge of looking after her mum’s finances in 2007, she only “did as she was told”.
Dewar said: “After my father passed away, she became very needy and required a lot of support.
“I worked part-time, so was at her house almost every day.
“She is a very independent person and fully in control of her faculties, she would tell me what to do.
“I would buy things for her, then take the money owed and use it on day-to-day expenditures.
“She had many, many visitors, she has a lot of friends and bought particular things for particular people.
“And she developed habits like buying six pairs of slippers at a time – by 2012 her demands were becoming ridiculous.”
Dewar told the court she was “flabbergasted” when her mum accused her of stealing money in 2013, and admitted the pair have been on bad terms ever since.
She added: “She asked me how much money I had in my wardrobe and under my mattress, I was totally flabbergasted.”
Procurator fiscal Kevin Corrins examined accounts dating as far back as January 4, 2007.
He questioned Dewar on figures which suggested Mrs Gall spent an average of £300 on foods from stores like Marks and Spencer, Asda and Tesco every month between 2007 and 2013.
He said: “It appears that Mrs Gall is going through £600 of supermarket shopping in two months, living alone and in her 80s.”
And he quizzed claims that Mrs Gall had given Dewar and her two daughters £1,000 each during the time of the alleged offences.
Dewar said the money was given as a gift so that they could “buy something to remember her by” after her mother died.
She said other family members would not have known about the gift at the time.
The trial, before Sheriff Olga Pasportnikov, continues.
