Woman jailed for stealing £86,000 from cancer charity honoring best friend's daughter

A woman who embezzled nearly £86,000 from a cancer charity established in memory of her best friend's daughter has been sentenced to three years in prison.

Lindsay MacCallum, 61, defrauded the charity Rainbow Valley over a ten-year period. The charity was launched by MacCallum alongside her former friend, Angela MacVicar, to honor MacVicar’s daughter, Johanna, who passed away from leukaemia. MacCallum also embezzled £9,505 from the Anthony Nolan Trust, a stem cell donation charity where she previously worked as a fundraising manager.

Speaking outside the court, Mrs MacVicar expressed her devastation at the betrayal. "I was bereft when I found out what she had done, totally bereft. She was my best friend, and I trusted her implicitly, as did everybody. She fooled everybody."

MacCallum, from Aberfoyle, Perthshire, forged signatures of charity staff and diverted funds from fundraising accounts for personal use between 2011 and 2021. The court heard that she had "systematically and deliberately" committed the fraud, with Sheriff Maryam Labaki condemning her for "betraying" cancer victims and depriving them of crucial funds.

Mrs MacVicar, reflecting on the impact of the theft on the charity and Johanna's memory, added: "I think she was sorry she was caught - no mention of being sorry for the devastation she has caused us and Johanna's memory."

The court was told that MacCallum worked for the Anthony Nolan Trust from 1995 to 2012 before co-founding Rainbow Valley with Mrs MacVicar. In 2005, MacVicar lost her daughter Johanna to leukaemia, and the charity was created in her memory to support those affected by cancer.

After the pair's falling out in 2022, Mrs MacVicar discovered discrepancies in an account linked to a fundraising event, leading to the discovery that MacCallum had embezzled £85,978 from Rainbow Valley.

Prosecutor Katie Cunningham revealed that MacCallum had expressed regret in a message to Mrs MacVicar, saying, "I'm really sorry Angela. I hate myself, I'm trying to make it right." MacCallum admitted that she had transferred money into her own account due to financial struggles involving her daughter.

MacCallum, a former Royal Navy servicewoman, pleaded guilty to two fraud charges amounting to £95,483. Her defence advocate, Deirdre Flanagan, stated that MacCallum had repaid £25,000 and intended to return the remaining funds.

Sentencing her at Falkirk Sheriff Court, Sheriff Labaki condemned MacCallum for bringing "devastation" to those who had placed their trust in her. "The purpose of the Rainbow Valley charity was to support the families of those suffering from cancer. You betrayed those who are suffering, and the terminally ill and their families."