A daughter, who was left shocked when her mother’s precious bracelet was stolen, put her detective skills to the test and tracked down the thief.

After hearing that her mother’s gold bracelet, which had been a gift from her late husband, had disappeared, the woman was left shocked and concerned. In a bid to track down where the bracelet had gone, the woman decided to investigate the missing piece of jewellery.

A court heard that the woman decided to email photos of the missing bracelet to pawn shops in the area to see if anyone had attempted to sell it. This then led to care home worker, Nasra Elmi, 37, being caught when she attempted to sell the piece of jewellery at a local pawn shop.

The mum-of-five, who worked at the Shire Hall Care Home in Cardiff where the victim - who suffered from dementia, cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease - lived, took the bracelet into H&T Pawnbrokers in Roath and claimed it belonged to her grandmother. However, the pawn shop was aware of the missing item and was able to raise the alarm.

When Nasra was told about the email from the victim’s daughter, she claimed that she had found the bracelet at the care home. However, it was noted that she had made no attempt to find its owner, instead choosing to sell it for her own personal gain.

Once Nasra was caught, the bracelet was returned to the victim, who then moved to a new care home as a result of the theft. Cardiff Crown court heard that the care worker is no longer employed by Shire Hall Care Home.

At the hearing, the care worker pleaded guilty to theft. While her defence lawyer, Kristen Murphy explained that she had been struggling financially and had been unable to feed her children. While Nasra appeared ‘visibly upset’ about her conduct due to her close ‘bond’ with the victim.

Judge Paul Hobson said: "Care staff do very difficult, important, and very valuable work. A great deal of trust is placed in those who work in such places by patients, patients' relatives, and wider society. How we treat our elderly and vulnerable reflects on all of us. The theft of this item was a despicable act on your part."

The disgraced care worker was sentenced to 10 months in prison for the theft, with the sentence suspended for a period of 12 months.