A SENIOR carer from Salisbury was sentenced to five months in prison today for mistreating residents at a specialist dementia care home.

The judge, Recorder Peter Blair QC, decided to give Agneskia Sztokmanska, 45, a custodial sentence at Swindon Crown Court after she refused to admit her guilt and for the fact that she challenged the evidence that was given by the whistleblowers.

Sztokmanska, of Nursery Road, Salisbury, who moved to the UK from Poland in 2006, began working at the home - Milford Manor care home in Milford Manor Gardens - in 2010, becoming a senior carer in 2012.

She was found guilty of threatening to throw, and throwing, shoes at one resident, pulling the hair of another resident, punching a resident in the back who was "in the way" and pulling a resident along the floor by the front of his pyjamas and down some steps.

The defence argued that a suspended sentence should be imposed due her previous good character and that she was the “sole breadwinner” as a single mother who had both a teenage son to care for and a retired father.

However the judge disagreed, he said: “It is very sad that you have been of good character for 44 years and you offend in this way now.

“Although you did not cause the victims any physical injuries it was the psychological damage that you caused.

“The fact is that you deny what you have alleged to have done and you challenged eyewitness evidence of people who came forward.”

The judge decided also that the reason why it was a relatively harsh penalty was because Sztokmanska broke the “trust placed in her by families”.

He added: “You have lost your job and you will never be able to work in this field again.”

Sztokmanska was not asked to pay the prosecution costs due to the effect that it would have on her family and will eligible for parole with good behaviour in two-and-a-half months.

After the sentencing the police also released a statement saying that they hoped it sent out a strong message to offenders that this type of crime will not be tolerated.

Police Sergeant Andy Fee from Wiltshire Police said: “She [Sztokmanska] was supposed to look after and care for vulnerable patients who were dependent on her care due to the fact they suffered dementia.

“What she did was callous, cruel and wrong and I hope this sentence imposed today provides some peace of mind for the families and witnesses who reported the abuse and supported the investigation.

“Our thoughts go to the victims in this case, some of whom have since died, and their families, who had to deal with the knowledge that their loved ones had been mistreated in this way.

“This prosecution sends a strong message to those who abuse vulnerable people who lack mental capacity believing they will not be caught.”

More in Thursday’s Journal.