Carer Steals £75K from Thunderbirds Award-Winning Writer

Gambling addiction can often have dire consequences for the people suffering from it and even their families. People addicted to gambling can engage in criminal activities such as thefts and robberies. In one such case, a carer, who abused his position, allegedly stole hundreds of thousands of pounds from an Emmy award-winning film writer and pleaded guilty to one charge of theft recently.

The case in question involves Allan Beacham, who used to be a carer for Alan Pattillo, the award-winning film writer and director. As announced by Daily Mail, Beacham allegedly stole more than £75,000 ($95,500) from the immobile and blind writer before his death. The money was used by the former carer to fuel his gambling addiction.

Pattillo, a famous Scottish writer and director, passed away at the age of 90 back in January 2020. The famous writer was a pensioner, who was blind and immobile and had trusted Beacham to care for him. Sadly, the carer abused his power by stealing regularly from the writer of Thunderbirds.

As a carer, Beacham was in control of the famous writer’s expenses. He asked for money from the writer’s lawyers Batt Broadbent to settle different payments, related to expenses for Pattillo. However, in reality, Beacham allegedly used the money for gambling. He allegedly spent some £25,000 ($31,800) from the writer’s funds on lottery tickets.

The Amount of Unaccounted Funds Signals Intentional Abuse

Allegations against the former carer state that he stole some £75,000 ($95,500) between January 1, 2017, and June 1, 2019. Beacham asked Batt Broadbent for a total of £30,408 ($38,700) between April 2017 and June 2019, explaining the money was needed for dental expenses for Pattillo.

However, according to prosecutor Thomas Evans, the total of the dental bill was only £4,298.99 ($5,475), leaving more than £25,000 ($31,800) unaccounted for. According to the prosecutor, Beacham “developed an addiction to gambling and that he continually sought to dig himself out of the hole he had made for himself by stealing from a vulnerable pensioner who had entrusted his care to him.”

Additionally, Evans noted that the magnitude of the funds without proper documentation reaffirms that Beacham intentionally abused his position in Pattillo’s life. He claimed that the carer failed to provide an adequate explanation for the unaccounted funds and when such was provided, it was inconsistent.

The trial against Beacham is yet to gain further traction considering his recent guilty plea. The former carer is scheduled to be sentenced in March at Winchester Crown Court in Hampshire.