A NEW mother has been jailed after pocketing more than £70,000 from the estates of deceased clients at the legal firm where she worked.

Lindsey Rafter used her position in the probate department at Murray Humphries solicitors, in Seaham, County Durham, to carry out the scam.

The 33-year-old covered her tracks by targeting clients with few or no survivng relatives, and creating false wills.

She also used the firm's position as power of attorney to access savings accounts held by those who had passed away.

Rafter, formerly Duncan, was arrested in 2005 after a cheque for £9,843 she had written to herself was queried by the bank with the firm's accounts department.

Rafter was suspended and later sacked when the extent of her four-year deception came to light. Prosecutors said she may have pocketed £100,000 in the fraud, but her defence team said it was nearer £76,000.

Lee Crozier, prosecuting, told Newcastle Crown Court: "She submitted the correct wills to probate, but then created false wills which lay in the file. The false wills would cover her tracks while she gave money to false beneficiaries. It was her who kept the cash."

Rafter, of Alexandrina Street, Seaham, admitted theft, obtaining money by deception and forgery. Her barrister, Christopher Morrison, said she was left with a mountain of debt after the breakdown of her marriage and did not use the stolen money for high-living. She is being pursued by the solicitors firm through the civil courts regarding the financial losses, he said.

He added: "She wants to say she is very, very sorry for the upset and loss and trauma her actions have caused."

Rafter has a new relationship and a 13-week-old baby. She has another child from her previous relationship.

Judge Guy Whitburn jailed her for 21 months. He said: "The forgery of a will is always an extremely serious matter."