Beryl Isaac, 102, was being cared for by her grandniece's close friend Yasmin Pugh, 31, who stole thousands of pounds worth of jewlerry from her
A woman was left devastated after she discovered the best friend she hired to care for her 102-year-old great aunt stole £16,000 of jewellery from the blind OAP.
Sara Otter, 33, hired Yasmin Pugh, 31, to care for disabled Beryl Isaac in Llanelli, Wales.
Yet the thief raided Beryl's jewellery box and made off with engagement and wedding rings, and a sentimental locket containing photos of Sara's late brother.
Pugh also pocketed money from Sara's five-year-old niece's piggy bank, all while being paid to care for the ailing centenarian.
She even comforted Sara's sobbing mum, Lynne Reed, 62, reassuring her the jewellery would turn up, after the family noticed it was missing, they said.
Pugh was discovered as the thief some of the items were tracked down to a gold sales shop, although most of the jewellery was never recovered, Sara said.
Full-time carer Sara, from Llanelli, Carmarthenshire, Wales, said: 'She was my best friend - so when we first noticed things going missing I was adamant it wasn't Yasmin.
Pugh pleaded guilty to a single count of theft and was given a 16-month suspended prison sentence at Swansea Crown Court
Sara Otter, 33, (right) hired Yasmin Pugh, 31, (left) to care from disabled Beryl Isaac in Llanelli, Wales
'The more we started looking for things, the more we noticed was missing - but when she first denied it, I believed her.
'It's not so much about the cost - she knew how sentimental those items were to us but she didn't care.
'What's the worst thing is my great aunt was totally oblivious to what was going on behind the scenes and we have had to lie to her about why Yasmin had to leave.
'I feel absolutely heartbroken - not only did we lose irreplaceable family jewellery but my trust was totally betrayed by someone I classed as a close friend.'
The thief raided Beryl's jewellery box and made off with engagement and wedding rings, and a sentimental locket containing photos of Sara's late brother
Cash worth £50 was also missing from Sara's five-year-old niece's piggy bank as well as more than £200 in gift cards that had been stashed in a drawer
Pugh pleaded guilty to a single count of theft and was given a 16-month suspended prison sentence at Swansea Crown Court.
Sara met Yasmin through work before moving away and losing contact but they quickly became close again when she returned to Llanelli in February.
She begged for help from Sara, claiming she had no job and no money to pay her rent, so Sara agreed to hire her to look after Beryl a few days a week.
After starting in June, Yasmin seemed to be thriving and Beryl became fond of her.
But soon Sara's mum, Lynne, went to dig out jewellery to wear for a wedding on July 20, which
