'Caregiver' who preyed on widow sent to jail

Margaret Collingwood

A Mt Maunganui housewife has been jailed for stealing more than $72,000 from the bank account of her sick, elderly neighbour.

Teresa Mary Zajonskowski, 51, forged signatures on 100 cheques belonging to Margaret Collingwood, who has since died, after befriending the 80-year-old widow and acting as her de facto caregiver.

Zajonskowski was sentenced to two years and three months in prison and ordered to pay $20,000 in reparation in the Tauranga District Court yesterday.

Mrs Collingwood's grandchildren, who were in court, told the Herald they were pleased Zajonskowski would spend time behind bars, but disappointed that she did not have to repay more of the $72,663 she took.

"It's been a long case and it's been a heck of a hardship on the family," said Mrs Collingwood's grandson Trevor Sutton. "I don't understand why she's not had to sell everything she's got."

Zajonskowski faced a maximum of seven years' jail on charges of fraudulently using a document between November 2002 and January 2004.

She met Mrs Collingwood when they lived in the same apartment building in Mt Maunganui and began running errands for the widow, who had the first stages of Alzheimer's disease, after she moved to a resthome in September 2002.

Zajonskowski quickly gained control of her chequebook, forging her signature and cashing the cheques.

Mrs Collingwood's bank eventually became suspicious and alerted her family and the police.

Zajonskowski, who sported a sleek black bob, red lipstick and pearl earrings in the dock, has consistently denied her guilt.

Her lawyer, Paul Mabey, QC, said she accepted that she had been convicted and was going to prison, but "she does not accept that she's a criminal and never will ... She'll maintain that position until she dies."

Passing sentence, Judge Thomas Ingram said Zajonskowski lied to police during the investigation and to him during her judge-only trial.

He characterised her offending as "serious and sophisticated", saying Mrs Collingwood was a vulnerable widow who had trusted Zajonskowski with her life savings.

"It was clearly an appalling breach of trust placed in you by an elderly victim."

Aggravating features were the amount Zajonskowski stole, the length of offending, and the fact that the fraud was brazen. It was also important to reassure the public that the courts took such breaches of trust seriously.

In mitigation, the judge acknowledged Zajonskowski's background of "selfless generosity" and glowing character references.

"You have hitherto been a woman of exemplary character."

Crown prosecutor Larry Meredith had argued the character references were irrelevant.

"She's a person who may well have given in the past, but she took from Mrs Collingwood."

The judge was not satisfied that Zajonskowski had the means to repay the full amount, ordering her to pay $20,000 in instalments of $100 a week, the first payment due within 90 days of her release.

Mrs Collingwood died two months after the police investigation began.

Her granddaughter Maria McNabb told the Herald the old lady had found it difficult to accept Zajonskowski's betrayal when told.

"We all as a family strongly feel that it did contribute to her death. It pushed her over the edge."

Ms McNabb hoped the case would serve as a warning to other people with elderly relatives in the care of strangers.