A STOURPORT taxi driver who stole a purse containing cash from a disabled and vulnerable passenger has been sent to prison at Worcester Crown Court.

Judge Nicolas Cartwright said the 10-month sentence on 53-year-old Mark Roffe was designed to be a deterrent to other drivers.

Roffe, of Windermere Way, Stourport, elected trial on a charge of stealing the purse from 84-year-old Doreen Protheroe but was unanimously found guilty by a jury.

Judge Cartwright said Roffe worked for a reputable Kidderminster taxi firm and had no previous convictions. The offence had cost him his job.

Roffe was also ordered to pay £2,200 costs and £32 compensation to Mrs Protheroe.

The court heard that Roffe was often called to take Mrs Protheroe from her home to go shopping in Marks and Spencer, Kidderminster.

She had a very distinctive purse and one day she noticed it was missing when she arrived at the store.

Charles Hamer, prosecuting, said a neighbour had seen Roffe take the purse and put it under the driver's seat. It was later found in a nearby garden where it had been thrown.

The judge said Mrs Protheroe could not drive and relied upon taxis to take her shopping. Since the episode with her purse, she had been reluctant to use the service and had to rely upon family for transport.

She now felt that she was "a prisoner in her own home." Her degree of trust had been deliberately violated.

Cristopher Gibbons, for Roffe, said he had a mortgage and tax bill to pay. His future as a taxi driver was to be considered by a panel of councillors in Kidderminster.