A best-selling novelist was stolen by a cleaner while he was on the deathbed

A trusted nurseand a family friend stole thousands of dollars from a dying best-selling author, the court said.

Horror author Guy N Smith, 81, rose to fame in the 1970s as the author of "fantastic horror books" and after publishing more than 100 books in his long career, Died after contracting on Christmas Eve 2020 coronavirus..

The family said cleaning worker Nicola Wiffen, 40, would help them with their work. After trusting her, he said he was upset to discover that he had stolen thousands of pounds. Convicted by the Telford Magistrates Court of stealing £2,400 from Mr. She was sentenced to imprisonment and ordered to work 130 hours without pay.

However, she returned in court after failing to keep her promise to the probation office.

Whiffen, from Knighton, Powys, admitted that she had violated a court order when she appeared before Landrindodd Magistrate.

His daughter Tara Paulson said Whiffen's theft had caused her father "great pain during his last few months." , said Whiffen had been hired as a cleaner. Whiffen began helping his father manage his affairs over the Internet.

Mrs. Paulson alleged that Mr. Smith and Mr. A long-standing friendship with Whiffen's father has come to an end.

She added: “This was a very traumatic situation for my father as he was suffering from immobility and hip pain and was awaiting surgery which did not materialize due to Covid.

"He had great love and trust in Nikki. The Smith family have been friends with all of Nikki's family for decades, so this was a huge betrayal on all levels.

"The lack of money also caused friction within the family as they tried to figure out what was going on.

.

"Sadly, thanks to the tenacity of Wayne Strangwood and his team West Mercia Police, we managed to obtain a conviction, my mother Jean, My three brothers and I are relieved that the solution came too late for my father, who died before the case went to court.”

Mrs.

She said: "We don't want anyone else to go through something like this." Sadly, older and vulnerable people need a lot of help online in communication and financially, and in the case of my father, Nikki shamelessly callously calls out that vulnerability advantage.”

Whiffen, said: That's what she wants to do first.

The magistrate did not enforce her suspended sentence, but she added 30 hours of unpaid work.

The author's 1976 novel Crab Night catapulted him to fame and allowed him to give up his job as manager of a bank in Birmingham. In total, he has published 124 of his books and 4,000 of his articles and short stories.

His 1977 novel Bats out of Hell tells how a contaminated bat escapes from a laboratory and spreads the plague.

The novel experienced a resurgence in popularity when it was reprinted during theCovid-19 pandemic.

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