A WOMAN repeatedly poisoned her elderly grandmother and left her suffering in hospital while she splashed thousands of pounds of her money on a lavish spa trip – a court has heard.

Jennie Greaves continually laced “vulnerable” Adele Andrews with powerful anti-depressants, which she sneaked into her food and drink.

Greaves also stole more than £5,000 from the 87-year-old’s bank account – half of which she splashed on a six-night trip to a “high-end” spa hotel.

The 37-year-old, who had lived with her grandparents in Beaulieu from a young age, said her actions were driven by a “failure to cope” with their care.

But yesterday, a judge branded her attempts to sedate her grandmother – hospitalising her several times in the process – as a “simply unfair”.

Appearing at Southampton Crown Court, Greaves, of Shrubs Avenue, Lymington, was given a two-year sentence.

Judge Gary Burrell also gave Greaves a further six months for a separate incident of fraud – against an ill man who had taken her in to stop her from becoming homeless.

Prosecuting, Rodrick Blain told the court how Greaves had used amitriptyline to secretly drug Mrs Andrews.

But the anti-depressant, which Greaves purchased online, caused her grandmother to fall ill.

As a result, Mrs Andrews was rushed to hospital several times between June and November last year.

At the same time, Greaves was using her grandmother’s bank card to withdraw cash, totalling almost £2,500.

She also enjoyed three hotel stays at her grandmother’s expense.

Greaves later confessed her crimes after doctors became suspicious of Mrs Andrews’ repeated hospital visits.

Defending, Lucy Conroy said Greaves had struggled to cope with the care of Mrs Andrews.

But Judge Burrell said that did not excuse her actions.

He said: “”What you did is to poison and try to stupefy her, to keep her passive and to keep her calm, not for her benefit, but for yours.

“To do that was simply unfair and risked causing her serious injury.”

In a statement, Mrs Andrews said she was "deeply upset" by Greaves' actions, but said she still missed her granddaughter.

A family member said after the case that Greaves' sentence was "not long enough".