Latest news with #vulnerablevictims
BBC News
5 days ago
- BBC News
Shillingstone theft victim urges 'Richard's law' to vet carers
A woman has urged tougher vetting for care workers after her husband's carer stole jewellery and cash from their Goodman, 54, from Yeovil, who had a similar previous conviction, was handed a 12-month suspended sentence by Weymouth Woollam, from Shillingstone, Dorset, said a basic Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check did not reveal Goodman's criminal MP has sent her campaign for "Richard's law" to the government, which has been approached by the BBC for comment. Police recovered a 250-year-old stolen necklace and currency from Goodman's home in 2024, the court Mrs Woollam's gold and diamond engagement ring, inherited from her mother, as well as silver earrings from her husband and other items were never a victim personal statement read by a prosecutor, she said Goodman was a "callous predator who deliberately seeks out vulnerable victims".She added: "No-one else should be left to feel so violated and betrayed because of her actions." Goodman was given a suspended sentence for a similar offence in 2010, the court Mrs Woollam said a basic DBS check failed to reveal the carer's three previous convictions for theft and obtaining property by said she had lost her trust in home carers and had been forced to make the "heartbreaking" decision to place her husband, who has advanced Alzheimer's, in a residential told Goodman: "You have wrecked Mrs Woollam's life. Her trust and peace of mind have gone."They imposed a jail sentence suspended for two years, 12 rehabilitation days, 200 hours of unpaid work and a two-year restraining defendant was also ordered to pay Mrs Woollam £1,000 and another £272 to the court. In a letter to her MP Simon Hoare, Mrs Woollam said: "People living with dementia are among the most vulnerable in society."Despite this there is currently no legal requirement for private carers to be qualified or registered."Convictions for theft from vulnerable adults may not appear on basic DBS checks."Just as we would not leave our three year old with an unvetted, unregulated carer, we should not be in the position where the necessity of finding home care for a vulnerable loved one, leaves us open to thieves, fraudsters and abusers."She said "Richard's Law" would bring England up to the same standards that exist in Wales, Northern Ireland and MP replied: "I have written to the Department for Social Care and the Department for Local Communities to share your devastating story and your campaign." You can follow BBC Dorset on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
BBC News
15-07-2025
- BBC News
Arrests after string of burglaries in Kingsbridge
A man and a woman have been arrested following a series of burglaries in south Devon, police have said.A number of properties have been targeted, often holiday lets or homes of vulnerable victims and various items including bank cards stolen in the Kingsbridge area, said Devon and Cornwall pages advertising cleaning services for holiday lets are believed to have been set up to gain access to lock box codes and spare keys ahead of future burglaries, police two suspects, who are both from Kingsbridge, have been released on bail, the force added. Detectives investigating the offences advised residents to be aware of instances of thieves "pretending to be legitimate cleaning businesses operating in the Kingsbridge and wider South Devon area, targeting holiday homes and vulnerable residents".
