Mum-of-four stole almost 100,000 from church to fund high lifestyle'

"Judge Mark Weekes said: All in all, you were funding yourself to a reasonably good standard of lifestyle grossly and dishonestly. Judge Weekes said that the money could have been used to help the homeless and families fed through food banks, adding that it would be on her conscience that children may have gone hungry while you were helping yourself to a high lifestyle."

"In a statement, which was read to the court on his behalf, Nicholas Seed, the diocese's chief financial officer, said it was upsetting that money which could have been used to help families fed through food banks and the homeless had been stolen. He said: The harm caused by (Yawson's) actions therefore reverberates beyond this courtroom to every corner of our community."

Francisca Yawson, 37, stole more than £96,000 from funds at the Diocese of Westminster through nine bank transfers to herself between September 2018 and August 2019 while employed as a gift aid and operations technician. She pleaded guilty to nine counts of theft and was sentenced to two years in prison, suspended for two years. The judge said she funded a high standard of living grossly and dishonestly and noted the stolen money could have supported homeless people and food banks. A wrongful police closure of the investigation between 2021 and 2025 delayed prosecution and likely reduced the severity of the sentence.

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