FOLLOWING a series of delays, before the week was out, the first witnesses took to the stand to give evidence in the trial of a former care home manager and its former owners.
Graham Walker and Lyn Walker, the former owners of the Amberley Care Home in Brierley Hill have been charged with defrauding Rita Barnsley, a former resident of the home who passed away in August 2021 at the age of 85, out of £175,000.
The former care home manager, Jamiel Slaney-Summers has also been charged with defrauding Ms Barnsley, as well as stealing £6,000 from her.
After a warrant was executed on Thursday evening (October 2) to bring Slaney-Summers to court after she failed to appear for three days having fallen ill, the first witnesses were called by the prosecution on Friday (October 3).
It is alleged that Ms Barnsley’s will was altered by the defendants which led to the fraud, and that her bank cards were used to make withdrawals.
A former employee of Amberley Care Home whose signature was on the will as a witness, Dawn Webb, told the court how she was called into Rita Barnsley’s room by Slaney-Summers and asked to “sign a piece of paper” in January 2021.
The piece of paper in question turned out to be Ms Barnsley's will, with prosecuting, Mark Jackson, having previously told the court how it said Mrs Walker and Slaney-Summers would receive 25 per cent and 50 per cent of Ms Barnsley's estate respectively and the staff at Amberley Care home £5,000.
Ms Webb said she did not know what she was signing, did not see any of the contents of the paper and did not recall seeing Ms Barnsley sign it either.
Mr Jackson asked her: “Why did you sign it?”
Ms Webb replied: “I was asked to by my manager”.
The defence for the Walkers, Henery Skudra, had just one question for Ms Webb about the character of the couple, to which she agreed they were “a lovely couple who made you feel comfortable”.
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Slaney-Summers’ defence, David Burgess, argued that Slaney-Summers was showing Ms Barnsley “a practice run of a solicitor’s will” and claimed Ms Webb knew she was signing a so-called “practice will”, which she denied.
Mr Burgess asked: “You weren’t troubled about what it was you were signing?”
Ms Webb responded: “No.”
She also told the court: “It just all happened so quickly.”
As well as Ms Webb, another employee who is now the current manager of Amberley Care Home, Julie Pringle, was called to the witness stand.
She told the court Slaney-Summers was “very close” with Ms Barnsley and was “constantly in her room”.
She said: “I don’t like [Slaney-Summers] because she is a pathological liar.”
Ms Pringle said Slaney-Summers told her that she was a beneficiary on Ms Barnsley’s will, but she was going to report it as the care home had a policy in place that said staff were not allowed to accept gifts from residents.
However, she told the court how Slaney-Summers was “waving the will” around the home and said: “All the staff knew about this will before Rita Barnsley passed away.”
When pressed on how she knew this by Mr Burgess, she said: “I was there.”
Mr Burgess asked Ms Pringle: “Did you have a reason for not telling the Walkers [about Slaney-Summers waving the will around]?”
She replied: “I told the Walkers she wasn’t a good manager.
“I did not know how deep this went.”
Ms Pringle said the Walkers were “honest” people and told the court Mr Walker wanted to go to the police about Ms Barnsley’s will.
All three have denied the charges made against them, with the Walkers, both of Ribberford Close, Halesowen, and Slaney-Summer, of Raven Hays Road, Northfield, attributing the blame to each other.
The trial continues.
