Family reacts as East Lothian care home worker jailed for abusing vulnerable resident

A former care home worker has been handed an extended sentence of eight years in jail and three years on licence for sexually assaulting a vulnerable resident.

Robert Wilson attacked Yvonne Carnie during his shifts at the East Lothian Council run Abbey care home in North Berwick.

Yvonne, who was 68 years old at the time, lived in the facility full time and needed round-the-clock care due to progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) a type of brain disorder that impacts mobility. 

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Despite her illness she bravely reported the abuse to the police, but sadly the mum-of-three died before seeing justice.

At a trial in April jurors returned a guilty verdict after watching Yvonne’s video statement which was recorded at a previous police interview.

Digby Brown’s Non-Accidental Team is supporting Yvonne’s family by investigating East Lothian Council to establish if there were any failings which allowed the abuse to happen.

Following the sentencing at the High Court in Edinburgh Yvonne’s family said: "No amount of time in custody can ever undo the calculated, predatory disregard this man showed for our mother, worsened by his lack of remorse and sickening denial.

“While we carry the weight of what she endured and the dignity stolen from her final years, we are profoundly proud that her immense courage in breaking her silence became the key that put a stop to the perpetrator’s abuses. 

“This case has exposed the harrowing reality of what happens when a predator uses their position to groom and isolate a vulnerable person.

“Our family will have our time to address the systemic failures that allowed this to happen.

“We thank everyone who has supported us but today is about the fact that our mother’s voice was finally heard.”

Wilson was also convicted and punished for the rape of another woman in 2013.

The sentencing was reported in national media including BBC, East Lothian Courier and Express.