Serial thief Charmaine Elston facing new allegations she stole from 65-year-old man

A Geelong magistrate has labelled a woman’s alleged thieving activity as “cruel and calculated and serious”, as an elderly man was left scared to return to his home.

A merciless Corio woman who has spent time in and out of prison for stealing from elderly Geelong residents is back in court.

Charmaine Elston, 35, appeared at the Geelong Magistrates Court via video link and was refused bail on burglary and trespass charges.

Charmaine Elston has been accused of walking into an elderly man’s home and stealing his wallet. Source: Facebook.

At the end of last month, Ms Elston, who is yet to enter a plea, got into a taxi with two men and drove to various addresses in Corio and Norlane before stopping in a carpark outside a set of Norlane units.

Ms Elston has been accused of walking to the home of the alleged victim and knocking on his door. According to police, the 65-year-old man thought it was his carer and told her to “come in”.

Ms Elston allegedly asked if she could use his toilet and came back to rummage through his cupboards.

After being told to “f**king leave”, Ms Elston allegedly stole his wallet containing cash and bank cards.

The elderly man said he attempted to stop her by grabbing hold of her ankles but Ms Elston allegedly dragged him along the carpet, causing some injuries. She took off back to the taxi and the men.

Acting sergeant Kerrie-Anne Maroney said the elderly man is “so scared he can’t go back to his unit”.

“She’s very smart in the way she commits these offences and she’s been doing it a long time. We need to protect the people of our community,” Ms Maroney said.

Charmaine Elston has faced the Geelong Magistrates’ Court over allegations she stole from a 65-year-old man and an 85-year-old man.

Defence lawyer Alexis Buckley said Ms Elston is contesting the trespass charge, telling the court the elderly man in the most recent incident had invited her inside and allowed her to use his bathroom.

The court heard Ms Elston has a long history of stealing from elderly residents, dating back to 2012 when she stole between $1000 and $12000 from a 60-year-old man in his home.

At the time of these new charges, Ms Elston was on bail for a November 2021 burglary of an 85-year-old man, also in his home.

She was accused of entering his home uninvited and demanding money. When the alleged victim refused, Ms Elston grabbed hold of him to remove his wallet and take $1000.

Ms Maroney said Ms Elston has spent time in prison for similar offences, including a four year stint for ribbing a 67-year-old man and 30 days for stealing from an 87-year-old victim.

Magistrate Michael McNamara said the most recent offending was “particularly cruel and calculated and serious”.

“An elderly man, a vulnerable man, was taken advantage of when he thought he was in the security of his home,” Mr McNamara said.

Ms Elston is due back in court on August 18.

Originally published as Serial thief Charmaine Elston facing new allegations she stole from 65-year-old man