Woman who stole £86,000 from best friend's cancer charity jailed

A pistillate who stole astir £86,000 from a crab foundation acceptable up successful representation of her champion friend's girl has been jailed for 3 years.

Lindsay MacCallum, 61, defrauded the foundation Rainbow Valley implicit the people of a decade, aft launching it with erstwhile person Angela MacVicar.

She besides embezzled £9,505 from the Anthony Nolan Trust - a stem compartment donation charity.

Speaking extracurricular court, Mrs MacVicar said she was "totally bereft" astatine the fraud and that MacCallum had "fooled everybody."

A tribunal heard MacCallum, of Aberfoyle, Perthshire, forged signatures of foundation unit and rerouted currency from fundraising accounts for her ain usage betwixt 2011 and 2021.

She was told by a sheriff she had "systematically and deliberately" perpetrated "calculating" frauds connected the 3rd assemblage organisations, and "betrayed" crab victims.

Outside court, Mrs MacVicar said: "I deliberation she was atrocious she was caught - nary notation of being atrocious for the devastation she has caused america and Johanna's memory.

"I was bereft erstwhile I recovered retired what she had done, wholly bereft. She was my champion friend, and I trusted her implicitly, arsenic did everybody.

"She fooled everybody."

MacCallum worked arsenic a fundraising manager for the Anthony Nolan Trust from 1995 to 2012 earlier she near to acceptable up Rainbow Valley with Mrs MacVicar.

In 2005, Mrs MacVicar mislaid her 27-year-old girl Johanna to leukaemia and the instauration was established successful her honour.

The brace worked unneurotic for 10 years earlier a fall-out successful 2022.

Mrs MacVicar subsequently discovered discrepancies successful an relationship acceptable up for a fundraising ball.

In full MacCallum took £85,978 from Rainbow Valley.

Katie Cunningham, prosecuting, told the court: "The accused sent a connection to Mrs MacVicar stating, 'I'm truly atrocious Angela. I hatred myself, I'm trying to marque it right."

"She said she was ashamed and it was "abhorrent" that she had transferred wealth from the relationship into her own.

"The accused said her girl was successful unspeakable occupation and needed entree to money.

"She said that she was uncovering it hard to unrecorded with herself."

The tribunal heard that MacCallum was made task improvement manager of Rainbow Valley and successful 2014 was fixed a foundation recognition paper to regenerate utilizing a Friends of Rainbow Valley slope account.

But the relationship remained successful usage and it was not until August 2022, aft a autumn retired betwixt the friends, that questions were raised implicit transactions from this account.

MacCallum - a erstwhile Royal Navy servicewoman - pleaded blameworthy to 2 fraud charges totalling £95,483.

Defence advocator Deirdre Flanagan said MacCallum had already paid backmost £25,000 of the wealth taken, was capable to repay the rest, and intended to bash so.

MacCallum, who appeared astatine Falkirk Sheriff Court by video nexus from prison, was told by Sheriff Maryam Labaki that she had "brought devastation" to those who had trusted her.

The sheriff added: "The intent of the Rainbow Valley foundation was to enactment the families of those suffering from cancer.

"You betrayed those who are suffering, and the terminally sick and their families.

"You deprived them of funds raised successful bully faith."