Northants socialite splurged £230,000 she stole from her dying grandmother on Beverley Hills hotels and designer clothes

A former fashion designer from Naseby ripped off her grandmother who had late stage dementia to live the high life in America.
Emily Evans-Schreiber spent the money living the high life in AmericaEmily Evans-Schreiber spent the money living the high life in America
Emily Evans-Schreiber spent the money living the high life in America

Emily Rosina Evans-Schreiber was used to a life of luxury after a spell designing clothes for models Cara and Poppy Delevingne in London.

But after she struggled to keep up with the lavish lifestyle, the 38-year-old stole £230,000 from her grandmother Rosina Evans and spent it on luxury clothing and top restaurants and hotels.

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Mum-of-one, Evans-Schreiber - the niece of Conservative life peer Baron Marlesford - escaped jail despite the high value of the theft and was instead given a suspended sentence for her crime.

Emily Evans-SchreiberEmily Evans-Schreiber
Emily Evans-Schreiber

Northampton Crown court heard this afternoon (Friday, January 10) how the defendant's mother Clare had become concerned about her life in London so had decided to buy her daughter a house in Northamptonshire so that she could give her granddaughter a better life.

Prosecuting, Lynsey Knott said that Evans-Schreiber, of School Lane, Naseby, had 'lived the high life' in London but at a family meeting in January 2018, she was told that she was old enough to start taking responsibility for her own life.

The socialite agreed to take control of her paternal grandmother Rosina Evans's finances. Rosina, who died recently aged 95, had been diagnosed with dementia in 2014 and lived alone in Surrey with help from social services carers.

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But Clare Evans-Schreiber became increasingly worried about how her jobless daughter was managing to fund a fancy lifestyle staying in Beverley Hills hotels.

Barrister Ms Knott told Her Honour Judge Rebecca Crane: "Mrs Evans-Schreiber contacted the bank who found that £230,000 had been transferred by the defendant from Rosina Evans's account into her own account."

Police were called in and found that the money had been transferred during a nine month period between April and December 2018.

The amounts had been transferred as 42 different transactions. At the beginning of the period, the defendant had just £40 in her current account.

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Ms Knott said: "It had funded a lavish lifestyle - top end hotels, restaurants, non-surgical cosmetic treatments, high value shopping. She couldn't have afforded it without funds from her grandmother's account."

The court was also told how £21,000 had been put into the account of Evans-Schreiber's former partner Sam Oguche, who is the father of her daughter, now aged eight.

When police searched the defendant's flat in May 2019 they discovered luxury shoes, clothes and sunglasses.

Wearing a green jumper, black skirt and black high-heels, Evans-Schreiber, who has 13,000 Instagram followers, wiped her eyes throughout the proceedings. Her mother sat in the public gallery in court.

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She pleaded guilty to one offence of theft and the court heard she had no previous convictions.

Mitigating, barrister Carolina Guiloff said that her client had always left enough money in her grandmother's account for her to pay her care bills - and at the point police were called in there was £5,516 left in Rosina's account.

She said the victim had never become aware of what had happened and that Evans-Schrebier had sent flowers and chocolates to her grandmother.

The court was told how the defendant had suffered from serious mental health problems and alcoholism and had been the victim of more than one abusive relationship, which had been reported in the national press.

"She's had 37 years of a blame-free life," said Ms Guiloff.

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"She was out of control and wasn't in her normal mental state. It would be wrong for your honour to be left with the impression that this was a cold and callous woman who had no regard for her grandmother at all."

Ms Guiloff said that her client had attempted to gain employment since the incident and had checked herself into The Priory to try to overcome her addictions. Psychiatrist's reports presented in mitigation said that Evans-Schreiber's actions had been influenced by her mental health issues.

Using judgements from previous court cases, Ms Guiloff argued that as the primary carer for a young child, Evans-Schreiber should not be sent to jail.

Sentencing her to a two-year jail term suspended for 20 months, 150 hours of community service and alcohol treatment programme, Judge Crane said that she had taken into account all the mitigating factors, adding: "Do not come to this court again asking for a second chance. That's what you've been given today."