A CALLOUS care worker stole cash from a vulnerable adult in Christchurch he was entrusted to look after, a court heard. Bournemouth Crown Court heard how Richard Hilder, 53, was a support worker with Solor Care Group responsible for looking after the 33-year-old victim who had lived in a care home all his life and was unable to manage his own finances.

Carers at the home were tasked to take cash out on behalf of residents when they needed money.

The court heard how the victim’s withdrawals were logged in a special book he kept in a safe in his room.

However, when Hilder, who lived in St Swithun’s Road South, Bournemouth at the time of his arrest, went on holiday earlier this year, staff received a bank statement that showed some discrepancies with the victim’s log, the court heard.

An audit was carried out and it was discovered that Hilder had stolen £3,048 from the victim’s savings and current accounts during an eight-month period.

Sentencing Hilder, Judge Samuel Wiggs said: “What you did was very mean in the sense that the money you stole was from an extremely vulnerable adult.

“This was undoubtedly a serious breach of trust.”

In his defence, the court head how Hilder, who pleaded guilty to theft earlier in the proceedings, had been diagnosed with depression, post traumatic stress and admitted in interview to “feeling funny” at the time he committed the offences.

When asked by the police what he had spent the money on, Hilder told them he had nothing to show for it.

The court also heard how Hilder was said to feel “devastated” by what he had done.

He was sacked from his job in March.

Hilder was given a two-year community sentence under supervision and a three-month curfew.