Nephew ‘lived high life’ on £600k he stole from elderly aunt

71-year-old jailed after spending ‘eye-watering’ amounts on cars, holidays and garden makeovers

A nephew stole £600,000 from his elderly aunt to “live the high life”, using it to buy cars, holidays and a Bitcoin machine, a court has heard.
David Eggleton, 71, was given power of attorney for Lilian Eggleton, 93, but transferred large sums from her account into his personal bank account.
Swindon Crown Court heard he used the money to pay for cars, holidays, garden makeovers, a Bitcoin mining device and £54,000 of Apple products. He also used it to pay off his mortgage.
His fraud, from 2018 until 2020, was only discovered when Ms Eggleton’s care home fees were unpaid due to insufficient funds in her account.
Eggleton, from Calne, Wiltshire, has been jailed for five years and six months after he was convicted of fraud and perverting the course of justice following a trial.
The recorder, Marcus Pilgerstorfer KC, told him: “Lilian Eggleton was your Auntie Lily, she was born in 1927 and worked hard all her life and through that toil, accumulated assets.
“In 2017, your aunt decided she wanted to live in a care home. She moved in on Dec 8 2017. On June 4 2017, she appointed you lasting power of attorney.
“Your aunt told the court in a video interview recorded before her death that she thought she could trust you.”
A direct debit for £4,500 per month was set up from Ms Eggleton’s bank to her care home, Kenbrook in Wembley, which is run by Methodist Homes.
The payment first bounced in August 2018, with issues continuing with payments until 2020. Ms Eggleton then gave permission for her bank account to be examined.
This revealed her nephew had been transferring “large sums” into his own bank account, the judge said.
The judge told Eggleton: “The total sum taken is quite eye watering. You used the money to live the high life.”
Eggleton was informed in June 2020 that his aunt did not want him to have any further involvement with her financial affairs, but he continued to withdraw cash from her account for months.
His email promised to pay the £31,853 outstanding care home fees within two weeks from his personal account and to directly replace money taken from her.
He said that, “as her loving nephew”, he would appreciate it if she withdrew her complaint to the police so they could rebuild their relationship.
“As a Christian, I would never do anything detrimental to her or others for personal gain,” he wrote.
The care home did not read the email to Ms Eggleton and instead passed it to police. She died the following month, on Feb 13 2021.
A video interview recorded before her death was played to Eggleton’s trial, with Ms Eggleton becoming tearful and describing her sadness at what her nephew had done.
The judge said: “There’s no doubt from watching Auntie Lily’s video interview that your actions caused her upset and concern at a time she was entitled to be free of worry and live out the rest of her time in peace.”
Representing Eggleton, Felicia Davy said her client had no previous convictions and had worked hard in the field of mechanical engineering during his life.