‘Black Widow’ fraudster who fled to Tenerife after stealing £300,000 from 89-year-old girl is advised to promote house to pay household again
A fraudster dubbed ‘the Black Widow’ who fled to Tenerife after plundering more than £300,000 from a pensioner has been ordered to sell her home to repay the money she stole.
Pamela Gwinnett, 62, isolated 89-year-old retired accountant Joan Green from her family and set herself up as a carer to cheat the pensioner out of her wealth.
She also persuaded Mrs Green to appoint her as a Lasting Power of Attorney and then abused the position to steal money from the frail pensioner, a few months after her husband Stanley died.
Gwinnett used the money she took to buy an Audi Q2, expensive meals, beauty treatments and Botox while keeping Mrs Green like a caged animal at her home in Chorley, Lancashire.
After spending her final years being ‘milked like a cash cow’ by Gwinnett, Mrs Green died in November 2022.
Following Mrs Green’s death, Gwinnett was charged with theft and fraud.
Against a ruling of the court, she absconded to Tenerife where she still remains now and has been nicknamed ‘The Black Widow’ due to her reputed interest in wealthy retirees.
Despite not returning to the UK to attend her trial, Gwinnett was convicted in her absence – and now a judge has made a confiscation order against her, putting the fraudster’s home in Adlington, Lancashire, at risk.
Pamela Gwinnett, 62, has been told to sell her home to pay the family of Joan Green, who she stole more than £300,000 from
Gwinnett isolated 89-year-old retired accountant Joan Green (pictured with her step-grandson, David Bolton) from her family
Judge Michael Maher had previously jailed Gwinnett in her absence for six years and condemned her for fleeing to the Spanish island, saying she had treated the legal process in the same way she had treated Mrs Green – ‘with contempt.’
Her barrister Abigail Holmes said Gwinnett intends to appeal the convictions of fraud and theft.
Gwinnett had realised Mrs Green was a ‘wealthy woman’ after she and her husband, a manager for British Aerospace, had worked hard and invested shrewdly.
‘But to you Mrs Gwinnett, Joan Green was nothing more than a cash cow to be milked until she was dry,’ the judge said.
She isolated Mrs Green by changing the locks and the landline phone number at her gated bungalow.
To siphon off large amounts of Mrs Green’s money, Gwinnett set up a joint bank account.
She also made false accusations against Mrs Green’s family which led to them being investigated by social services.
Mrs Green’s step-daughter, Katherine Farrimond, 65, and her step-grandson, David Bolton, 41, were among the relatives that Gwinnett isolated.
Pictured: Joan’s step-grandson David Bolton, step-daughter Katherine Farrimond, and Mr Bolton’s wife Rebecca celebrate outside Preston Crown Court after Gwinnett was found guilty
In a victim personal statement, Mrs Farrimond said the family had been left ‘devastated’ by Gwinnett’s actions, which had meant Mrs Green and her husband’s bodies laid in unmarked graves for several years because of delays in the probate process.
‘Pamela has been the reason for this as she has been uncooperative in the probate process,’ she said.
‘We are still trying to get access to the money and property from Joan’s estate.
‘This in turn means that we have been unable to give Joan and Stanley the dignified burial they deserve and the family has been unable to properly grieve and say goodbye to them.’
She also said that Mrs Green believed that her ‘family hated her’ and ‘didn’t want us to see her’ due to the ‘lies’ passed on by Gwinnett.
Judge Maher has now made a confiscation order for £350,180.79, which Gwinnett must pay within three months.
The judge said that Gwinnett’s house in Adlington would have to be sold to pay the confiscation order.
If Gwinnett fails to pay the money she owes, she will be liable to 42 months in prison.
Judge Maher said: ‘This is a rare case where I am able to make a full confiscation order for the funds which were stolen.
‘Unusually the available amount exceeds the proposed confiscation figure. Against that background I have made a compensation order to the estate of Joan Green.’
