Retford woman caught trying to commit £58k will fraud

Amanda Elam was given an 18 month sentence suspended for two years at Nottingham Crown Court

A woman who changed bank documents to try and claim £57,961.19 from her late uncle's estate has been handed a suspended jail sentence.

Amanda Elam claimed she was owed the money because she had deposited it into a joint account with her uncle while he was alive.

However, Nottinghamshire Police investigated and found she had falsly altered bank correspondence.

She was given an 18 month sentence suspended for two years.

Elam, 54, of Thrumpton Lane, Retford, was also handed 260 hours of unpaid work at her sentencing at Nottingham Crown Court on Thursday,

Police said she told relatives the joint account was opened in 2017 so she could help her uncle buy a bungalow.

She claimed that he had opened the account with almost £130,000 from his pension and she had paid in additional money to help pay for a renovation.

'Acted for her own interests'

However, her relatives became suspicious the extra money had come from the uncle's own accounts.

Her uncle died in September 2019 and the executor of his estate refused to administer his will until it was investigated.

Elam provided officers with emails and electronic letters from the bank, which she said proved the money had come from her accounts.

However, after carrying out checks with the banks, officers found she had electronically changed the correspondence to corroborate her story.

She pleaded guilty to fraud by false representation and two counts of making or supplying an article for use in fraud.

Det Con Akil Kapasi said: "Elam was trusted by her uncle but clearly acted for her own interests after he passed away.

"Naturally, this has been a very upsetting case for the wider family, causing them immense stress and preventing the distribution of the uncle's estate."