A British headteacher who stole £500,000 sterling (€724,000) from her school to fund a lavish lifestyle was arrested at a hospital in London today.
Former nun Colleen McCabe (50), was found guilty of theft and deception in July after milking school funds to pay for foreign holidays, jewellery and designer clothes.
However, failed to appear in court for sentencing today.Judge Christopher Elwenn, who had warned McCabe faced a long prison term, issued a warrant for her arrest after she failed to appear.
She was then arrested by police at the Queen Elizabeth hospital in Woolwich, south London tonight.A Scotland Yard spokesman said McCabe was discharged from hospital, arrested and taken to Plumstead police station, and would appear before Greenwich magistrates tomorrow.She was expected to be remanded in custody to appear at Crown Court nextweek.
During the two-month trial, the court heard how McCabe milked the school for five years, spending £7,000 on 90 pairs of shoes and splashing out on presents for friends and family. She paid for her parents to travel on the Orient Express.
Her spending spree only ended when local government auditors checked the books after a period during which the school managed its own finances.
McCabe's old school, the 1,100-pupil St John Rigby Roman Catholic College in Bromley, southeast London, struggled to buy new books during the time of the thefts, pupils said.
McCabe denied the charges, blaming a colleague who was subsequently cleared.