A man has been jailed after stealing thousands of pounds from his elderly mother while acting under a Lasting Power of Attorney.
Martin Chubb, 59, of Newbury, pleaded guilty to one count of fraud by abuse of position at Reading Crown Court on 22 January.
At the same court on 11 June, he was sentenced to four years in prison, reduced to two years and four months following his guilty plea and other factors.
Chubb had been granted Lasting Power of Attorney to manage his mother’s property, finances, health and welfare.
Between 20 August 2024 and 20 January, he used that position to steal money from her account to fund his own lifestyle – including paying for his wedding, holidays, clothing and drugs.
The offending came to light when the victim’s other son noticed irregularities in her finances and raised concerns, prompting a police investigation.
The fraud left Chubb’s mother unable to pay care home fees, with £22,790 having been taken from her account.
Investigators found Chubb had initially stolen £43,790, although some of the money was later repaid. He was arrested on 20 January and charged the following day.
Detective Sergeant Georgina Adey, from Thames Valley Police’s Central Fraud Unit, said: “Chubb abused a position of trust that his own Mother gave him.
“A Lasting Power of Attorney gives a person full access to the Donor’s bank accounts in order to look after their finances when they become too unwell to do this for themselves.
“Most of the time, Donor’s chose their children or close family members to be their Attorney, and this makes sense because they are the most trusted to care for them and do right by them.
“No mother should ever have to face the fact that their own child abused that power, spending money that should have gone to carers, on holidays, drugs, clothes and his wedding.
“What is more hurtful is that Chubb would have likely inherited some of his mother’s estate when she passed anyway.
“Chubb got greedy and the ease of which he could defraud his mother lured him in to take more and more.”
She added: “Unfortunately, we are increasingly seeing frauds involving Lasting Power of Attorney in our office and they are heartbreaking for families.
“I am delighted with Chubb’s sentence, it reflects the severity of the offence and I hope it will act as a deterrent to others and demonstrate Thames Valley Police’s commitment to pursue those who exploit trust for financial gain and bring them to justice on behalf of victims.”
