A couple who had their life savings stolen by their son, who was trusted to care for their finances, will recover more than £21,000 as part of a court order.
Seth Proctor abused the trust placed in him by his parents by stealing more than £125,000 of their money, which was set aside to fund their retirement home.
Proctor, 55, of Manston Court Road in Margate had been given permission to handle the victims’ bank account and finances to ensure the cost of their accommodation was covered each month after the couple sold their house in 2011 and moved into the home.
Instead, between 2013 and 2015, the former owner of the Intolerant Wife cafe in Broadstairs spent all their cash and was forced to call social services in January 2015 for help with meeting the future payments.
Proctor admitted to taking the money and tried to justify his actions by claiming it had been to fund businesses, which subsequently failed.
The matter was reported to Kent Police and Proctor was charged with theft on Monday 6 March 2017.
He was given a 20-month suspended prison sentence on Friday 2 June 2017 at Canterbury Crown Court and was ordered to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work.
Proceeds of crime
Following Proctor’s conviction, he was brought back to Canterbury Crown Court on Friday 17 August this year to answer for the money he stole.
Detective Inspector Annie Clayton from the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate said: “After Proctor was convicted, we made an application for a confiscation order under the Proceeds of Crime Act. This legislation is used to claim back money that offenders have gained through crime.
“No one should be able to benefit financially in this way, least of all Proctor who had, in total, actually benefited from £134,876.17.
“At the Proceeds of Crime Hearing, Proctor was ordered to pay back £21,666.67, which is the cost of his current available assets. He has three months to pay this or he’ll face going to prison for 12 months.
“Furthermore, if we identify any future assets we can revisit the confiscation order and take the case back to court until the full benefit amount set out in the order is satisfied.
‘Shocked’
“The worst part about this case is the trust he broke. The victims were shocked, hurt and embarrassed by what he had done to them.
“I hope all victims are reassured that Kent Police investigations don’t stop at the point of conviction and we will continue to use the full extent of the law to seek justice.”