Gwinnett had her sentence increased at Preston Crown Court on Monday
A fraudster who spent 16 months on the run in Tenerife after being convicted of plundering an elderly woman’s life savings has been handed an additional two months in prison for breaching her bail.
Pamela Gwinnett, 63, was sentenced at Preston Crown Court on Monday after her extradition from Spain.
Gwinnett fled to Tenerife in April 2025, just hours after her application to vary her bail terms – purportedly to scatter her brother’s ashes – was refused. She also ignored a condition to surrender her passport, having been awaiting trial for defrauding vulnerable 89-year-old pensioner Joan Green from Chorley.
Apprehended at her Tenerife apartment on 14 July, Gwinnett was extradited, arriving at Manchester Airport last week. Appearing in court in the same clothes she wore upon landing, she admitted breaching her bail.
Sentencing her, Judge Michael Maher stated: “No evidence of a brother has ever been produced, much less that he passed away. This was a deliberate and sustained attempted to evade justice.”
Last October, Gwinnett was convicted in her absence by a jury and sentenced to six years for theft and fraud by abuse of position after conning Green out of approximately £300,000.
Her barrister, Rosalind Scott Bell, offered an apology, claiming Gwinnett fled due to “fear and anxiety” of arrest and “poor mental health”. Ms Scott Bell added that Gwinnett “was, and is, of the view that she is not guilty of the offences.”
Dismissing the apology, Judge Maher told Gwinnett: “Frankly your apology carries no weight at all. As I said in October, you have treated this process, as you did Joan Green, with utter contempt.” Gwinnett, of Adlington, Lancashire, had systematically plundered the life savings of retired accountant Mrs Green, controlling her finances and isolating her from her family as her carer.
Gwinnett orchestrated her scheme by making false claims against Mrs Green’s stepdaughter and step-grandchild, including theft and neglect, before securing power of attorney. She then used Mrs Green’s money to fund an extravagant lifestyle, buying a £22,500 car and indulging in expensive beauty and Botox treatments.
During her original sentencing, Judge Maher had described Mrs Green as “simply a cash cow to be milked until she was dry.”
He added: “And so, having inveigled your way into their lives behind the charade that you were a benevolent friend to Joan, you set about playing the long game to isolate and control a vulnerable woman and thereby enrich yourself. There was in my judgment a self-assured shamelessness to your fraudulent activity, to use the colloquialism, you have some brass neck Ms Gwinnett.”
Gwinnett denied stealing from Mrs Green when confronted by a Sky News crew outside her Tenerife apartment, stating: “I don’t need to answer these questions. Did I heck take the money.”
She has been ordered to repay the stolen funds. Judge Maher commended the Crown Prosecution Service, Greater Manchester Police, National Crime Agency, and journalists for their roles in securing her extradition and ensuring accountability.