Graham Walker, 74, and his wife Lyn, 71, plotted with manager Jamiel Slaney-Summers, 65, to to scam frail 85-year-old Rita Barnsley in “one of the UK’s biggest elder fraud cases”
Two “greedy” care home bosses who tried to fleece a pensioner out of £133,000 by faking her will have each been jailed for three years.
Owners Graham Walker, 74, and his wife Lyn, 71, plotted with manager Jamiel Slaney-Summers, 65, to to scam frail 85-year-old Rita Barnsley in “one of the UK’s biggest elder fraud cases”. A court heard the “sham” will was created with different coloured pens and different handwriting while the “isolated” pensioner was living at Amberley Care Home in Brierley Hill, West Mids.
The bogus document thanked “good friend” Slaney-Summers “for the happiness and laughter she gave me” while Lyn Walker was included “for allowing me to stay in her lovely home”.
An investigation was launched by council bosses after Miss Barnsley’s only surviving relative, her cousin Verna Woolley, became suspicious and made a complaint. It was found the scheming trio had plotted to get the lion’s share of the estate made up of the value her £150,000 house and £28,000 in savings.
On Wednesday February 4 Mr and Mrs Walker, of Halesowen, West Mids., were jailed at Wolverhampton Crown Court and each ordered to pay £30,000 costs. Slaney-Summers, of Northfield, Birmingham, was previously caged for five-and-a-half years after all three were convicted of fraud.
Sentencing, Judge John Butterfield KC said: “This was a situation which presented itself to you and you reacted with greed rather than with concern or honesty.”
He said Miss Barnsley’s relative Verna Woolley suffered from agoraphobia but did what she could to keep in touch. He said “deliberate steps” were taken to make it more difficult for Miss Woolley, who was told she could only contact Miss Barnsley on a land line.
The judge added: “Miss Woolley smelt a rat from the outset. She was fobbed off but not bought off.”
The court was told that ‘vulnerable’ Miss Barnsley moved into the care home after becoming unwell in May 2020. At the time, the Walkers owned the care home, while Slaney-Summers was the registered manager.
Miss Barnsley, who died in the summer of 2021, had cash in bank accounts and owned property worth ‘in excess of £150,000’. Her last will and testament was reportedly made on January 12, 2021.
In it, Mrs Walker and Slaney-Summers were appointed as executors of the will. It left Mrs Walker, the owner of the care home, 25 per cent of Miss Barnsley’s estate, with 50 per cent being left to Slaney-Summers.
Mark Jackson, prosecuting, said Miss Barnsley’s only living relative and next of kin was her cousin Verna Woolley, who had been adopted into the family. But their contact ‘diminished significantly’ while Miss Barnsley was at the care home.
Mr Jackson said: “Miss Barnsley clearly became more isolated from her daily connections in the community.”
Miss Woolley began to have ‘concerns’ when she read the will and noticed she had been referred to as her ‘adopted cousin’ – a term she insisted Miss Barnsley never used.
The court heard Slaney-Summers also stole around £6,000 by making withdrawals from Miss Barnsley’s bank account by using her card.
Henry Skudra, defending, said “It was Slaney Summers who was the driving force behind what was going on. The Walkers were involved in the latter stages and were not involved in the forgery of the will. Mercifully Miss Barnsley was not aware of what had happened.
“Both the defendants are of good character. Each of them have lead blameless lives before what was rather an opportunist crime. Decades of hard work and reputations ruined.”
He said both the Walkers had health issued with Mr Walker having been hospitalised nine times in 2025. He had also recently had an operation which had resulted in his bowel and intestine removed.
Mr Skudra said Mrs Walker had worked in the care industry for 52 years and was a carer for her husband.
