A former care worker has been jailed for eight years for a series of burglaries and robberies targeting elderly and disabled victims, including a blind wheelchair user.
Ediongseyene Essien, 32, of no fixed address, broke into the homes of four elderly and disabled victims the day after he was suspended from his job, Liverpool Crown Court heard on Friday (August 28).
Crime spree details
Essien, who had been employed by Comfort Care, was suspended the day before he arrived at the home of a wheelchair user in the Tuebrook area of Liverpool at around lunchtime on March 10. He used a key stored in a coded safe outside the property to gain entry and took the man's bank card, which was later used to make purchases at Bargain Booze and L7 Village Market in Fairfield.
He then visited a 74-year-old man at his ground floor flat in Anfield, entering the victim's bedroom, although no items were believed to have been taken. At around 7.30pm, he gained entry to the supported living accommodation of a bedbound man, also in Anfield, after telling staff he had left belongings inside, and spent up to 15 minutes ransacking the complainant's possessions before leaving empty handed.
Elderly couple targeted
Earlier that same day, Essien called at the home of an 88-year-old woman and her 85-year-old husband, also a wheelchair user, at around 3pm and let himself in before departing. He returned at 9pm, ringing the doorbell and waving through the window, then came back roughly 20 minutes later and kicked at the back door until he smashed a glass pane. He stole the man's wallet, which contained £200, before fleeing.
In a statement read to the court, the woman described how the ordeal had "completely devastated their lives". She added: "We welcomed this man into our house and treated him with nothing but kindness and trust. To have this trust betrayed is heartbreaking."
"The feeling of absolute helplessness in that moment was truly awful. My home, which I loved and cherished, is no longer my safe place. Due to our age, disabilities and severe mobility issues, we are unable to leave the house. We are trapped in the very place this trauma occurred. He robbed an elderly couple of their peace, comfort and safety in their final years."
Further attacks after bail
Essien was arrested in relation to the burglaries and released on bail, after which he turned up at the home of a blind cerebral palsy sufferer in Edge Hill shortly after 2pm on May 15. The occupant, who had cancelled his scheduled visits that day, went to his front door in his wheelchair, but Essien insisted he had been "sent to check on" the man and forced his way inside, kicking the victim out of the way. He took £90 in cash before fleeing.
The victim said he had "not slept properly since" and was now "very nervous and anxious". He added: "I just hope he doesn't get away with it. I'm very wary of new carers. I'm scared he will come back."
At approximately 5pm the same day, Essien targeted a "highly vulnerable" woman as she returned home from a nearby shop, snatching her handbag, which contained £40 in cash and her bank cards, "forcefully pulling it from her grasp" when she attempted to fend him off with her walking stick. Her shopping bag was torn in the struggle.
She told the court: "I've lost any independence I had before. I used to go out to the local shop and attend various community activities. As a result of this, I've felt very anxious at even the thought of going out on my own. I have to ask staff in my supported accommodation to go out to the shop for me. I'm a very vulnerable person. I feel that the person has seen me as an easy target, which is why he's attacked me. I fear someone will see me as an easy target again."
During questioning, Essien admitted carrying out the robbery on the man, telling detectives he was "homeless and needed money". He also confessed to robbing the woman, stating he had "lost his job and was struggling and needed money for food".
Sentencing
Essien, who has no previous convictions, admitted two counts of robbery, four of burglary and a charge of fraud. Appearing via video link to HMP Liverpool, he was seen holding his head in his hands before being jailed for eight years and handed restraining orders banning him from contacting his victims for the next decade.
Sentencing, Judge Stuart Driver KC said: "You were a care worker. Your job was to visit elderly, very vulnerable people in their homes, so you were given the codes to open their key safes so that you could go through their front doors. You were suspended from your employment, and then you decided to use your knowledge of those people to trespass in their homes in order to steal from them."
He added: "I accept that you committed the crimes when you were at a low ebb, having lost your job, and that you were homeless before you did the robberies. I accept that the offences occurred on two days only when your mental health was declining, and the pre-sentence report says you are a low risk of reoffending. You have shown real remorse."
