A woman posing as a guardian angel organized a charity auction to raise funds for a little girl – but kept the money for herself.
Tracey Smith contacted after she appealed to raise £ 3,000 to buy a special bed for Katie Baxter, three years old, who has infantile parkinsonism.
She offered to help organize a charity auction, and ensured that the entire neighborhood donated gifts and money.
In total, she raised more than £ 3,000 – but stopped answering calls when fundraising ended.
& # 39; Months passed and the money did not come out & & # 39 ;, said Sue, from Freshwater, Isle of Wight.
During this time, Sue himself had been blamed by people who had donated, wondering where the money had gone.
The police had advised her not to say anything, so she couldn't explain when her windows were smashed and she was spit out on the street.
Katie had to have a bed with high sides to prevent her from falling out, because part of her condition meant that she had seizures at night, sometimes five in a row.
In addition to incredibly rare infantile parkinsonism, she also suffers from sleep apnea, epilepsy, autism and deafness in one ear.
she finally got the bed she needed after the family set up their own fundraising page, helped by a sincere charity.
Smith dealt with magistrates in the courtroom last June. The police suspected that £ 7,000 was missing, but she admitted that she had taken £ 1,000 fraudulently.
She was given a 12-month suspended prison sentence and had to pay £ 1,000 in damages.