A HOME CARER who stole around €9,000 from an elderly man has received a suspended sentence on condition she repay the money.

Mother-of-two Angela Walsh (44) was working as a home help assistance for Thomas Armstrong for a number of years before she began stealing from him.

She told gardaí that she stole the money because she needed to pay off a drug debt built up by one of her daughters.

She admitted the wrong doing and told gardaí she knew it was wrong and was sorry.

Since the offending came to light she has lost her job with the home care service.

Walsh of Ferrycarrig Park, Coolock, Dublin pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal court to three counts of stealing cash from Armstrong at Bank of Ireland, Coolock Village on dates between 20 October 2016 and March 2017.

The court heard that she had taken the bank card from his wallet and that the security PIN was written on a piece of paper beside the bank card.

None of the cash has been reimbursed by the bank.

Kevin McCrave BL, defending, told the court that his client’s husband had died in 2016. He said Walsh had attended the victim for a number of years and there was a good relationship between them.

He said she has no prospects of ever working as a carer again and now works as a cleaner of Air B&B lettings for €120 a week.

Counsel said Walsh was trying to clear a drug debt and was under duress at the time.

Judge Martin Nolan imposed a two and half-year sentence which he suspended in full.

He said that restitution was important to the victim and noted that Walsh had brought €5,000 to court for her victim. He ordered her to repay the balance of €4,000 within six months.