Gambling great-grandmother convicted of charity robbery of more than £115,000

Prosecutors said Bent, of James Close, King’s Lynn, stole the money between June 2020 and January 2022 and had a “gambling addiction”.

He contacted Norfolk police to tell them he had “borrowed” money from the charity to pay off his mortgage.

Bent was a Sharp administrator, externalwhich manages the largest independent archaeological projects in Britain.

The 65-year-old had previously admitted four charges, including fraud by abuse of position and falsifying documents.

She had paid back around half the money before the fraud came to light, with £61,000 still outstanding.

Defense barrister Philip Farr said her husband had lost his job, couldn’t pay the mortgage and started gambling.

“This was not a crime committed out of greed, but out of desperation,” Farr said.

Bent was sentenced to two years in prison suspended for two years.

Recorder Brander said she had “dishonestly abused” her position and that the crime was a significant breach of trust.

In his judgment, he gave Bent credit for seeking help for her gambling addiction and said his decision not to send her to prison took into account her poor health.

The recorder added that the great-grandmother’s game was a “misguided attempt to deal with the situation you found yourself in” and acknowledged that some of her children had shunned her since the incident.