A care worker who stole £21,000 from a pensioner in order to fund a gambling habit has been sent to prison.

Anna Bavenhielm was entrusted with managing the affairs of a vulnerable 89-year-old woman from Penshurst, but instead used her bank cards to repeatedly withdraw cash and deposit it into her own bank account.

Bavenhielm, 62, began working as a live-in carer for the victim in March 2017. Between April and November of that year she made 66 separate withdrawals at cash machines, stealing a total of £21,646.

The alarm was raised when a relative accompanied the victim to a bank and upon checking statements discovered the thefts. Bavenhielm was arrested on November 10, 2017, and inside her bedroom officers discovered bank statements belonging to the victim, as well as receipts from cash machines and life insurance documents.

She was granted bail with conditions, while the investigation was ongoing, but then failed to return to a police station and fled the county.

CCTV images show her using the victim's cards at a cash machine in Hildenborough and on October 10, 2018, Bavenhielm was located in Exeter and arrested again. She confessed to stealing the money and blamed a gambling problem, telling officers she had spent the money on scratch cards.

Bavenhielm, of no fixed address, was charged with theft and pleaded guilty at Maidstone Crown Court. On Fridayshe was sentenced to 14 months' imprisonment.

Detective Constable Ben Willbye said: "Bavenhielm’s actions were simply deplorable; she has caused considerable stress and upset to the victim and her family.

"Thankfully, she is now finally facing justice and she will never again be able to work in any care environment or with vulnerable people."