Judge Orders Woman and Ex-Husband to Repay £675,000 Misappropriated from Late Mother’s Estate

A judge has ordered a woman and her ex-husband to repay a significant sum of money that was allegedly misappropriated from the woman’s late mother.

The case was brought to court by the woman’s sister after their mother passed away in 2019 at the age of 86. The sister sought to uncover the whereabouts of the missing funds, claiming that her sister had taken control of their mother’s finances in 2017, when the mother became mentally vulnerable. It was alleged that the woman had deposited £475,000 of her mother’s money into a bank account and later transferred most of it to her ex-husband for investment. The sister asserted that the majority of the money was lost in risky currency spread betting.

The ex-husband denied knowing the money belonged to the mother and stated that £144,000 had been returned to the woman, who then allegedly purchased a Porsche for £54,000—a claim she denied.

The judge found that the mother’s estate was now nearly depleted and described the woman’s actions as incompatible with acting in her mother’s best interests. Consequently, the woman and her ex-husband have been ordered to repay £475,000 plus an estimated £200,000 in interest to the sister and the estate. Additionally, the woman was ordered to repay a further £25,000 plus interest.