Man stole $65,000 from elderly neighbour

File photo / NZ Herald

A West Auckland man has admitted stealing more than $65,000 from a pensioner over several months while posing as a helpful neighbour.

Clayton James Walter McDonald, also known as Clayton Henry, took it upon himself to become "an extra carer" for an elderly man who lived next door to him on a Glen Eden street.

The 31-year-old took the victim shopping four times at the start of the year, took note of his bank-card pin number and by July had drained all the man's accounts, maxed out credit cards in his name and even assigned himself as executor of his will.

At Waitakere District Court last month, McDonald pleaded guilty to 31 charges including forgery, obtaining by deception and unlawfully opening mail.

Court documents show the offending began in March when the victim was hospitalised several times because of falls.

McDonald admitted to entering the house next door where he stole two bank cards, cheques, and jewellery including the man's dead mother's wedding ring.

With possession of the bank cards and the man's personal details, the offender set up internet banking accounts and over a three-month span made 360 transactions, depositing more than $60,000 into his own bank account.

During that time, McDonald also applied for various credit cards in the victim's name, which he intercepted from the mailbox next door once they arrived.

When questioned, he told police he had spent the money on "personal items for himself and his family".

Arguably the most shocking offending took place on June 5, when McDonald applied for a will through Perpetual Trust Ltd in the name of the victim.

On the form he assigned himself as the executor of the estate and the $150 fee for the service was paid, like everything else, using the man's credit card.

McDonald admitted the offending as soon as he was confronted by police but with regards to the will said: "I wasn't going to go through with it."

The unemployed offender could not be reached for comment but in an online profile said he used to own a hair studio in Napier and described himself as "a perfectionist".

"Life couldn't be any better. Winning Lotto would be the cherry on top," McDonald wrote.

He will be sentenced at Waitakere District Court in two weeks. The maximum penalty on the forgery charges is 10 years imprisonment.