THE former deputy manager of an assisted living facility will never work in the care sector again after pinching £40 from an 89-year-old woman.

Scheming Fiona McLaughlin, 55, was captured on hidden camera escorting her victim out for lunch before returning to the empty room to pocket the cash.

Fiscal depute Graham Macdonald told Glasgow Sheriff Court that the pensioner’s nieces had convinced her to take up residence at Loch Laidon Court. It was arranged that the two family members would remain as her main caregivers, but a flat key would be kept in an office on site in case of emergencies.

Due to reports of money going missing at the sheltered housing complex, the complainer’s nieces installed a hidden camera within her room.

McLaughlin’s lawyer claimed that his client – who was deputy manager at the time – was investigating the thefts, however Sheriff Tony Kelly found that dubious given the charge she was facing.

On the day in question, it was discovered that £40 was missing from the victim’s purse. The hidden camera footage showed McLaughlin escorting the woman out for lunch at 12.47pm before shortly returning to steal the money – using the emergency key to gain access to the room.

When shown the CCTV, McLaughlin said: “If I’ve done it, I don’t know why.”

McLaughlin was initially charged with stealing £480 between June and August 2016, but pleaded guilty – which was accepted by the Crown – to taking just £40 from a flat within Loch Laidon Court in Loch Laidon Street on August 3, 2016.

In defence it was explained that there had been a number of thefts and other staff had been dismissed in the months leading up to this crime.

Her lawyer described the “horrible offence” as “incredibly mean-spirited” and accepted that the accused’s position of trust aggravated the matter.

Sheriff Kelly stated: “It passes the custody narrative, doesn’t it?”

The lawyer accepted that it did as McLaughlin was aware the room was empty because she was the one who escorted the pensioner out.

The accused justified her theft by claiming she was going through a crisis in her own life at the time and was under stress at work due to the lack of support by management.

Her lawyer stated: “She’s terrified of this whole process, terrified of the consequences.”

McLaughlin resigned immediately following her dishonesty and was subsequently struck off and will never work in the care profession again.

Sheriff Kelly was “not moved” by the accused’s plight and found her attitude within the Criminal Justice Social Work report to be unacceptable as she lacked insight and culpability into her role in the crime.

He told her: “You deserve to go to custody.”

Instead, McLaughlin was sentenced to a Community Payback Order with supervision for a year and 200 hours of unpaid work to be completed within nine months.

She was also tagged and placed on a Restriction of Liberty Order in which she will have to remain indoors at her boyfriend’s house in Main Street, Bellshill, between the hours of 7pm and 7am for four months.