Sharlene Bosita was captured on CCTV, in the Chesterfield care home where she worked, in nearly 40 incidents of cruelty and violence towards three residents. Acts included throwing water at victims, making it look like she was about to elbow them, slapping them with gloves and pushing and pulling them about. All three residents were in their 80s and had dementia, which left them confused, frail and vulnerable.

Bosita’s abuse was uncovered when the care home needed to check the CCTV for an unrelated reason when they noticed footage of her pushing a resident into a chair. A more detailed review of the home’s CCTV revealed the extent of Bosita’s actions. Following a police investigation, the CPS authorised three charges of ill-treatment or neglect by a care worker. Bosita pleaded guilty to all three counts at Derby Crown Court in February and was today sentenced to nine months imprisonment.

Graham Heathcote from the CPS said: “Sharlene Bosita behaved with callous cruelty towards three people she was employed to look after and protect. While individually the level of violence Bosita used was relatively minor, over a prolonged period, there can be no doubt that her actions will have caused significant emotional and physical harm to her victims. Given their vulnerability, it was important to establish the extent of Bosita’s criminal behaviour, for which she has now been held to account.”

In order to authorise these, the CPS needed to be satisfied that the defendant’s actions have been deliberate or wilful in their nature. As part of the charging exercise, the CPS identified a number of lines of enquiry, including the actions taken by the care home and their policies for handling patients to ensure there was a clear differential between the care home’s expectations of their staff and Bosita’s conduct.