Queensland Ambulance Service officer John Scrimgeour accused of stealing $50 note from 85yo woman

An experienced Queensland paramedic allegedly said “I shouldn’t have done it” when confronted outside the home of an elderly patient.

Queensland Ambulance Service officer John Scrimgeour leaves Brisbane Magistrates Court on Tuesday. Photo: Lyndon Mechielsen.

An experienced paramedic will learn his fate next week after being accused of taking money from an elderly patient after treating her in her Brisbane home.

John Scrimgeour is charged with one count of stealing and faced a hearing in Brisbane Magistrates Court on Tuesday.

Scrimgeour, who has worked as an ambulance officer for 26 years, is accused of taking a $50 note from the 85-year-old woman’s home in Zillmere on Brisbane’s northside.

Police allege he was seen “snatching” the $50 note from a table in the patient’s home and putting it into his pocket.

It is further alleged that when confronted outside the home, Scrimgeour initially denied the accusation before saying: “I shouldn’t have done it.”

A witness told the court that Scrimgeour then claimed he had already put the money back on the patient’s kitchen bench.

Scrimgeour provided a different version of events.

He claims he mistakenly picked up the note from a desk in the patient’s home as he was picking up his medical gloves.

He told the court he thought it was his $5 he had with him earlier.

Scrimgeour said when he later discovered it was in fact a $50 note and realised it was not his, he was “embarrassed” and he returned it.

His legal team described the incident as “a comedy of errors” and a “mistake” and that there was “certainly no fraudulent intention” involved.

The magistrate will deliver his verdict and reasons on Monday afternoon.