A MONMOUTHSHIRE businessman has been jailed for stealing every penny of his frail mother’s £246,000 retirement fund.

Graham Westbury, 66, had been given power of attorney when his mother Joyce was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.

Merthyr Crown Court heard that when Westbury’s mother died aged 90, her fortune was split between him and his brother, Keith.

It was only when Mrs Westbury’s will was read that her son’s spending of the money was revealed.

Westbury ran an agricultural engineering business in Usk, where his widowed mother lived, before moving to his current home in Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire.

The court heard that most of Mrs Westbury’s money was from the sale her £235,000 detached house in the town.

Her pensions and other savings went towards care home costs until her death in 2011, three days short of her 91st birthday.

Over the course of 10 years, Westbury switched money between several accounts, creating a “confusing” picture of his mother’s finances.

John Ryan, prosecuting, said: "To start with he claimed all monies were spent with the consent of his mother during lucid periods. This is no longer the position.

"These offences were committed over a long period of time and there was concealment."

The court heard that after Mrs Westbury’s care fees were paid there was a shortfall of £243,939.

Westbury, who now runs a Venetian blinds company in Haverfordwest, admitted to four charges of theft.

It was revealed that the father-of-four had bought a new house – complete with a £40,000 extension – shortly after taking over his mother’s finances.

But the court heard that most of his money was squandered on living expenses.

Nicholas Fridd, defending, said that his client had spent the money on “everyday expenditures” rather than “luxuries or holidays”.

He added: "He recognises his dishonesty and is very sorry he allowed himself to dip into her accounts in the last few years of his mother's life."

Westbury’s wife and children sobbed in the public gallery as he was jailed for three-and-a-half years.

The defendant, who has heart problems and high blood pressure, sat with his head bowed in the dock during the sentencing.

His brother has now begun civil proceedings over the missing money.