Cwmbran daughter took her jailed paedophile dad’s pension

Rachael Gatenby, 35, emptied her dad’s bank account when he was in prison for rape, indecent assault on a girl under the age of 16 and running a brothel, a court heard.

Her dad, who was not named in court, had asked her to open a Halifax account so he could receive his private pension, Cwmbran Magistrates’ Court heard.

But she withdrew his cash to pay for day-to-day living expenses at supermarket chains like Asda and Tesco.

His account went overdrawn so she forged his signature and opened a second bank account with NatWest so pension payments could resume, magistrates were told.

Gatenby, of the Courtlands, Greenmeadow, Cwmbran, admitted dishonestly withdrawing £8,251 from the Halifax account, £539 from the NatWest account and writing a forged letter to his pension fund.

Her solicitor, Paul Morris, said she had experienced financial difficulties and understood she could withdraw money to pay for dayto- day expenses but her father had only authorised payments for £725.

The bench adjourned the case and ordered an “alloptions”

report, meaning she could face custody.

Gatenby’s father was handed an “indeterminate sentence”

for indecent assault on a girl under 16, rape and running a brothel in 2007, Mr Morris told the court.

He came out of prison in December last year to find out his pension money had been taken and she had set up the NatWest account without his knowledge, the court heard.

The court was told she had two convictions for criminal damage and assault in the 1990s.

She pleaded guilty to two counts of fraud by false representation between April 2010 and February 2011 and January and November 2012, relating to the Halifax and NatWest accounts, under the Fraud Act 2006.

She also admitted making a false instrument, namely a letter, to induce CapitaTRW Pensions to accept it as genuine under the Forgery and Counterfeiting Act 1981.

Gatenby was given unconditional bail to be sentenced at Cwmbran’ Magistrates’ Court on August 8.