A son who stole £72,000 from his vulnerable elderly mother will be allowed to repay around half the amount originally agreed by a court - because wedding rings he had bought did not raise as much cash as expected.

The poignant detail about the case emerged as Carlisle Crown Court reconsidered the case of Carlisle man Colin Little.

The 50-year-old had earlier admitted stealing the money from his mother Margaret during 2015 and 2016 as he began spending money to fund an addiction to gambling.

He was last year jailed for 32 months.

At the city's crown court, the case was reconsidered as lawyers reported on efforts to claw back some of the stolen cash through powerful Proceeds of Crime laws which aim to strip criminals of their ill-gotten gains.

An earlier hearing had been told that financial investigators had found that Little had just under £13,000 in recoverable assets.

But that figure now had to be revised downwards, said Paul Tweddle, the defence lawyer representing Little, from Watson Street, Carlisle.

Part of the reason, said the lawyer, was that the wedding ring that had been bought by the defendant at the time of the theft proved not to be as valuable as was originally thought.

Also cash from a pension fund had been taxed at 55 per cent because the defendant has not yet reached 55.

"This has resulted in a payment of £5,355 as opposed to £11,000," said Mr Tweddle.

Prosecutor Brendan Burke said the defendant had cooperated with the authorities but efforts were being made to pursue all assets because of the damage caused to the elderly victim.

Recorder Julie Clemitson agreed to amend the existing Proceeds of Crime Order, reflecting that while Little benefited to the tune of £71,121 from his crime his available assets are just £6,159.

The defendant committed the theft after an accident rendered his mother vulnerable.

Despite the fall, Mrs Little still retained her full mental capacity, and she was adamant that she did not give her son permission to use the money - from the proceeds of a house sale - as he wished.

The court heard that she had been left devastated by the theft.

The defendant's wife, 54-year-old Jacqueline Little, also dipped into the pensioner's diminishing pot of money as the couple splashed out on a new £4,500 bathroom and replacement wedding rings.

She denied theft but was found unanimously guilty by a jury after a trial.