A WOMAN who preyed on elderly and vulnerable people for cash has been jailed for six years.

Kathleen Perry, 50, of London Road, Bexhill, was sentenced at Brighton Crown Court last Friday after being unanimously convicted by a jury of five counts of fraud and two of breaching anti-social behaviour orders.

She had pleaded not guilty to the charges against her, meaning victims had to give evidence as part of the prosecution's case.

One was an 83-year-old man who suffered; Perry took from his Bexhill care home having falsely told him he needed to pay £40 to attend a Christmas party at a day centre in Hastings.

She also spun stories about needing money to meet spurious coroner's costs, saying a friend of her victims, one of whom was 68, had died.

She had breached an ASBO stopping her entering any warden-controlled premises, complex or sheltered accommodation she did not live in unless visiting someone who knew her.

She also breached another ASBO by going to a cash machine, bank or building society with someone who was not a partner or relative.

Judge Paul Tain told Perry that her actions, targeting vulnerable people and using false representation to obtain cash, had been despicable.