THE son of west Belfast murder victim Gerard Devlin has been jailed with another man for stealing an elderly pensioner's life savings from her handbag at a shopping centre.
Gerard Devlin (25) - whose father was stabbed to death during a fight outside his west Belfast home in 2006 - was jailed for 18 months along with 22-year old Nathan Finn for stealing almost £6,000 from their "vulerable" victim.
Judge Patricia Smyth told the pair they would also serve 18 months supervised licence on their release.
The court heard that the 80-year old woman has been left "deeply traumatised" by the offence which was carried out at the Kennedy Centre on October 31 last year.
Prior to the theft, which occurred in the Sainsbury's coffee shop and which was captured on CCTV, the pensioner had withdrawn her life savings from the Danske Bank, which she planned to use for home improvements.
After withdrawing the money, which the pensioner placed in a plastic bag, she purchased a few groceries in Sainsbury's before visiting the coffee shop.
Whilst she was standing in the queue, Finn, from Malone Road, distracted the woman while co-accused Devlin, from Donegal Road, reached into her handbag and stole the bag containing the cash.
The court heard that the money was never recovered, and while both Finn and Devlin admitted the theft, they have never disclosed what happened to the stolen cash.
During today's sentencing, both men stood in the dock with their heads bowed as Judge Smyth branded their behaviour as "despicable."
Telling the pair that in her view the theft was planned, the judge said there was "no doubt" that they "deliberately targeted" the elderly woman.
Judge Smyth also said the incident has left the pensioner traumatised and on medication, and that she has "suffered a great deal" as a result of what happened.
Judge Smyth said Finn - who has a history of substance abuse - committed the offence within days of being released on licence for a previous matter.
She also questioned whether the remorse he has since expressed was genuine.
Regarding Devlin, Judge Smyth revealed that he wrote a letter to his elderly victim earlier this year - but again questioned whether or not his remorse was genuine.
She also spoke of "traumtic events" in his early life which have had a significant impact on his emotional health, and revealed that when Devlin was released on bail for this offence he was the subject of a paramilitary attack.
After passing sentence, Judge Smyth said it was up to the courts to protect the elderly and to deal severely with those who target such vulnerable victims.
