Koonawarra woman denies fleecing $5k from client with Parkinson's

Koonawarra resident Shandel Kelly, 36, faced Wollongong Local Court on Tuesday, where she pleaded not guilty to one count of dishonestly obtaining a financial advantage by deception.

Kelly supported the alleged victim - a 63-year-old woman with Parkinson's - who was under 24 hour care at a specialist disability accommodation.

It's alleged the complainant had a total of $2800 in one of her bank accounts, however, became aware a large amount was missing during November 2022 when another support worker attempted to pay for items at the shops on her behalf.

Upon logging into her banking app, the complainant allegedly saw her bank balance sitting at $221.23.

Further inspection with the help of a relative allegedly revealed several transactions made from her bank account to another account that she was unaware of.

She was later made aware by her bank that a new account was created in August 2022 without her knowledge or consent.

It's alleged the complainant noticed various amounts of money transferred from her account into the new account between August and November 2022, linked to Kelly's personal email address, with transactions ranging from $6 to $250 - totalling $5375.

A manager at Client Care First was alerted and reported the matter to police.

Following an investigation, police allege bank records clearly show transactions from the alleged victim's account to Kelly's, and that Kelly's phone number was subscribed to the pay ID linked to her personal account.

Police will allege Kelly unsubscribed the pay ID linkage the day she was made aware her employment was suspended.

Kelly presented herself to Lake Illawarra police station on April 26. She will fight the allegations in a hearing set down for April 15.