New Milton woman Sophie Hobby given suspended jail sentence after defrauding her grandmother of over £10,000

A WOMAN who defrauded her grandmother out of more than £10,000 was branded “despicable” by a judge as she narrowly avoided being sent to prison.

Sophie Hobby (31), of no fixed abode but previously of Marryat Road in New Milton, conned her 82-year-old relative over a period of months by claiming she needed money for her rent, women’s refuge and taxis.

Southampton Crown Court heard how Joyce Gaines had been Hobby’s guardian since she was around seven years old.

Prosecutor Keely Harvey said that in the summer of 2022 Hobby contacted her grandmother to say she was having problems with her bank account and her housing association had threatened her with eviction unless she paid rent arrears.

“This became a very long sob story about her financial situation,” Ms Harvey explained.

For a period of around three months she asked her grandmother to transfer money into bank accounts belonging to her friends, the court heard.

In November 2022 she told Ms Gaines she was being sent to a women’s refuge by police, but needed money to stay there. Ms Gaines received an email from a man purporting to be the manager of the refuge who said if the money was not paid she would lose her place.

Emails were also sent asking for money for Hobby’s two dogs which were being kept in a “compound”, that needed toys and bedding, the court heard.

Ms Harvey said that while she did pay the money, Ms Gaines stated in an email response that she was not well off and relied solely on her state pension. She also said she hoped she was not being scammed, to which the email replied she was not.

Texts from Hobby to her grandmother also requested money for food, taxis and phone top-ups.

In December that year Hobby sent her grandmother a screenshot of a letter which said she was owed around £9,000 in back-dated benefits, which she used, Ms Harvey said, as an “inducement” to assure her the money would be repaid.

Ms Harvey added: “Hobby had doctored the letter regarding the amount she was owed. That money never appeared.”

In January 2023 Ms Gaines’ ex-husband – Hobby’s grandfather – was contacted to say Hobby had been in a serious accident and needed money to get home from Winchester hospital.

Ms Harvey added: “By now they both felt it was all a scam by Sophie. Ms Gaines rang the hospital, but she had not been admitted.”

Ms Gaines, whom the court heard had lost Hobby’s mother to a heroin overdose, was upset but realised she needed to “cut Sophie off”.

At one point she had been left with just £67 in her account which had left her “desperate”, the court heard, but when she asked Hobby about repaying the money, she was verbally abused.

The pensioner told police she felt “helpless” adding: “I know Sophie doesn’t want to do this. My daughter died from drug use and I saw first-hand how desperate she was.”

In interview, Hobby said she had a “chaotic lifestyle” but initially maintained the money had been spent on rent and taxis. She later admitted it had at times been used for drugs.

Defending, Gaylene Coles said Hobby was vulnerable because of her addictions, and had also been sexually exploited and suffered domestic violence.

She added her actions had been “appalling and disgusting”, with Hobby “knowing which buttons to press to take advantage of her grandmother”.

She was remorseful and in “desperate need” of help, which could be given through the probation service if she was not immediately sent to prison.

Hobby, who received a total of £10,762 from her grandmother, had pleaded guilty to fraud by misrepresentation at an earlier hearing.

Sentencing her to a 12-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, Judge Peter Henry called the crime “despicable”.

He added: “Over a period of time you conned your grandmother into giving you a lot of money by deceiving her and falsifying documents to show what you were saying was legitimate.

“That was deeply dishonest, it was mean, and entirely selfish – just despicable behaviour.

“You deliberately targeted your grandmother who was vulnerable – not just because of her age but because you knew she loved you and would give the money. This was an abuse of that love.

“This sort of offending very much deserves a custodial sentence but I am persuaded, given the background you have, that in this case it can be suspended.”

Judge Henry ordered Hobby to carry out 40 rehabilitation sessions and 100 hours of unpaid community work.

He added he would “very much like” to order compensation for Ms Gaines, but felt doing so “would be a disaster”.