These incidents occurred across various care homes and facilities, raising concerns about the oversight and safeguarding practices meant to protect some of the country's most vulnerable individuals.
In September, Shaun Vincent, 36, from Greater Manchester was jailed after admitting sexual offences against a teenager. The care worker from Wigan pleaded guilty to making unwanted sexual advances, using sexual language and committing sexual offences against her.
In Sutton-in-Ashfield, healthcare assistant Rebecca Welsh was jailed in September for negligence after a patient at a mental health unit took her own life, after she failed to carry out appropriate observations on the welfare of Amelia Rose at Millbrook Mental Health Unit.
In a more recent case, 69-year-old Naguib Lootfun was jailed for sexually abused a vulnerable patient while working for an assisted living facility. Suspicions about his behaviour were raised on May 8 after colleagues found an empty condom wrapper discarded in a bedroom at the premises after he had been on a night shift.
Here are some of the most horrific crimes involving the care workers reported this year.
5. Jinu Shaji
Devon care worker Jinu Shaji was jailed in March for 12 months after being caught on film physically abusing an elderly patient. Jinu Shaji, aged 26, of Russet Avenue, Exeter, was convicted of ill-treatment at Exeter Magistrates’ Court on December 21, 2023 and sentenced today at Exeter Crown Court. The victim, a 94-year-old man who was partially-sighted and had limited physical mobility, was a resident at Langford Park nursing home in Devon. In July 2023, his family installed a camera and recorded the abuse following concerns they had after noticing bruising on the victim’s leg. The harrowing footage showed the man being handled roughly and being treated with a lack of dignity and respect. | Devon and Cornwall Police
6. Petula Hatzer
Petula Hatzer, 55, of Mortlake Drive, Manchester, was sentenced to one year and one month in prison after pleading guilty to 10 counts of fraud by false representation and one count of fraud by abuse of position, amounting to £20,000. The sentencing took place at Minshull Street Crown Court on March 13, 2024, following a years-long investigation into her exploitation of a vulnerable client. Hatzer's criminal activities came to light in October 2020, when a fellow carer raised concerns about her actions. The whistleblower reported suspicions that Hatzer had been opening credit card and catalogue accounts in the victim's name for several years. The victim, who requires 24/7 care due to severe incapacities, had no ability to manage her finances or open credit accounts, making her an easy target for Hatzer's fraudulent schemes. | Greater Manchester Police
7. Nikola Penevski
Care worker Nikola Penevski, who defrauded an elderly care home resident in Brislington, Bristol of tens of thousands of pounds was jailed for more than two years after admitting to abusing his position as the deputy manager of Rosedale House Care Home to withdraw more than £40,000 from the bank account of the vulnerable victim. Bristol Crown Court heard how Penevski, 35, using the victims bank card, made dozens of withdrawals between January 2022 and December of the same year until this activity was flagged by the bank. | Avon and Somerset Police
8. Anne Hill
Anne Hill, 57, was sentenced to six years in prison for stealing over £125,000 from an elderly man after abusing her power of attorney. Hill, who frequently visited Louis Woodward, a man in his 80s from Blyth, drained his accounts to support her online gambling addiction and pay for a lavish holiday. The fraud, which took place between August 2019 and April 2021, involved multiple online transfers from Mr. Woodward's accounts, leaving them empty and overdrawn. Hill also accessed £93,697 from a lifetime mortgage on Mr. Woodward's home, transferring the funds into her own account. She was arrested in April 2021 after a friend of Mr. Woodward raised concerns. During the trial, Hill claimed the money was used with the victim's consent, but her defence was rejected by the court. | Nottinghamshire Police