article: A respected Women's Institute president has been convicted after raiding the bank account of her dying life-long friend. Kathleen Bailey, 70, a church elder and avid charity fundraiser, was given power of attorney over her terminally ill 87-year-old friend's finances. Bailey later became a carer for her victim, who was battling breast cancer and had no children. But the grandmother, from Ramsbottom, Greater Manchester, helped herself to at least £1,500 and used the money to finance trips to north Wales. Kathleen Bailey (pictured) was given a suspended jail sentence after admitting stealing from her dying friend's bank account . She was handed a 12-month suspended jail sentence after admitting a charge of theft at Bolton Crown Court. She was also ordered to pay £1,500 to her victim's estate. The court heard her victim had persuaded Bailey to take power of attorney, giving her control of the sick friend's financial affairs. She had used the power properly at first to ensure her friend was looked after in a care home in Bury and enjoyed days out. But she then 'overstepped the mark', according to the prosecution, when she helped herself to cash from her friend's account. Officials at NatWest bank in Ramsbottom suspended the account when they noticed increasingly large sums of money being withdrawn from October 2012. Over a three-month period, £800, £880 and £1,100 was taken out in successive transactions. The police arrested Bailey at her home in Ramsbottom - and her victim died eight weeks later. Before her death, she told officers she had been happy for her friend to treat herself, the court heard. Colin Buckle, defending, said the pair had been life-long friends and that Bailey had become her elderly friend's carer, and had also taken her away on holidays as well as carrying out daily chores. The defendant 'still misses her friend', he said. She was handed a suspended jail sentence after admitting a charge of theft at Bolton Crown Court (pictured) But the prosecution said Bailey 'overstepped the mark' and took at least £1,500 for herself although the exact figure was not known. 'When she found out her friend of 70 years had betrayed her trust she was devastated.' After the hearing, a member of the victim's family - who believe Bailey stole as much as £10,000 - said: 'I am absolutely shocked and appalled how anybody could do this to such a caring, loving lady, especially when she was in such poor health, fighting terminal cancer. 'When she found out that Kathleen Bailey had betrayed her trust and stolen her savings which were paying for her nursing care, she was devastated. 'She told me it wasn't just the money, it was the fact that her best friend of 70 years and whom she relied on in her ill health had betrayed her trust. 'She had been such a strong lady, but her confidence was so severely knocked that within a few weeks, she had lost her 12-year battle with cancer.' A friend blasted Bailey's 'shameless crime', adding: 'The money that the victim had was being used to pay for her care. She thought at first that it had all gone. 'She was devastated by the breach of trust. They were close friends for years and she treated her as a daughter. It's an awful thing to do to a dying woman. She was a lovely women who was very generous.' Bailey's solicitor Helen Vaughan added: 'I have absolutely no doubt Kathleen Bailey intended no harm or wrong towards her friend.' Bailey was president of the Shuttleworth-in-Ramsbottom Women's Institute and a well-known church elder at Dundee United Reformed Church. She was also involved in a number of charities and organisations, including Ramsbottom Fire Cadets.
highlights: Kathleen Bailey, 70, was given power of attorney over friend's finances .
  Her 87-year-old victim was battling breast cancer and had no children .
  Bailey helped herself to at least £1,500 and took trips to north Wales .
  She was given suspended jail sentence after admitting one charge of theft .
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