The conduct of carer Bhupinder Sahota, who plundered the bank accounts of an elderly woman who trusted him implicitly, cannot be excused.

The very fact that he was prepared to steal is bad enough, but that his chosen victim, Marie Rose Penn, was someone who he had known since he was six years old and treated him as a member of her family makes this an incredibly callous crime.

After she granted him power of attorney over her finances, he systematically looted her savings to such an extent that the widow does not now have sufficient funds to pay for her funeral and owes a nursing home £18,000.

She faces an uncertain future and may even lose the home she shared with her late husband for more than 30 years.

Sahota has not only taken her money, he has taken the peace of mind she deserved so much after a lifetime of hard work and financial prudence.

And what did he need to buy so desperately that he was prepared to stoop so low? Designer clothing and jewellery, including, it would seem, a staggering 76 designer tops and 44 pairs of jeans.

The court heard that Sahota had been told he had a disease which would eventually take his life, which must have been devastating for him.

But that cannot be an excuse for him to go out and wreck somebody else’s life.