A 'DESPICABLE' conman who fleeced his own mum out of tens of thousands of pounds, forcing her to sell her home just to settle the debts he had run up, has been jailed.

There were jeers from the public gallery as Adrian Mackenzie, of Rosedale Avenue, Banbury, was told he would serve three years in jail after leaving his mother 'penniless' having stolen about £25,000 from her bank account and credit cards.

During his trial, in which he was convicted of three counts of fraud last week, jurors were told that the 46-year old had blown the cash from his mother's accounts between 2013 and 2016.

He used her money to pay for regular weekly shops at Tesco, as well as subscriptions to Sky of more than £90 a month, and cards were also used for shopping sprees at designer outlets at Bicester Village.

Mackenzie also financed an 'executive' Mercedes car during his scam, which ultimately saw his mother have to sell her own home, having lived there for 19 years.

At the sentencing hearing yesterday Recorder Ann Mulligan called his crimes 'despicable'.

She said: "You didn't show one iota of remorse for the position you had pushed your mother into.

"You are a selfish, greedy and deeply dishonest individual devoid it seems of moral fibre. Your offending is so serious that only custody can be justified."

The court also heard that his elderly victim and mother - Jacqueline Mackenzie, had since been left in a position in which she could no longer enjoy some of her favourite past-times because of her smaller home - gardening and keeping pets.

Recorder Mulligan added: "It is clear to me while you have carried on living your life, making plans to buy a new larger home for yourself and your family, you have left your mother living in a one-bed flat in an area she does not want to live because it is an area that is some distance from her daughter with whom she does have a relationship.

"And tragically she is now without her two small pleasures in life - her garden and cat."

Mackenzie was jailed for a total of three years for each of the three counts to run concurrently with each other. No order was made for costs or compensation.