To name and shame: that is the question.

 The last forty-eight hours have been amongst the most difficult in our nearly ten years in Cyprus, and we have been affected deeply by these issues of trust and honesty. Throughout my working life, honesty and integrity have been my yardsticks. And so, I am locked on the proverbial horns of a dilemma.

There is a part of me that burns with rage, and I was tempted to flood social media with the name and photograph of the thief. My darling wife, Ann, has persuaded me not to do that. The reason is simple. If the identity of the thief is revealed, her whole family will suffer. It is not their fault in the slightest, and to tar them with the same brush would be inexcusable.

On the other hand many people want to know this young woman’s identity, for their own security. I should imagine people who employ English cleaners feel especially vulnerable. But, at Ann’s behest, I have undertaken not to reveal the identity of this woman online. And my word is my bond.

Regardless of this, I shall be reporting this woman to the police next week, and asking that they take the appropriate action. I would like to see her arrested and charged with theft. A criminal record might just persuade her to see the error of her ways - although I doubt it.

I cannot draw a line under this until due process is followed. It would be disappointing if the police do not proceed.

I trust readers of this blog will understand the reasons behind my decision.

A loss of trust …

 Sad times … a tale of loss of trust … and how wretched we feel.

Some months ago we engaged a cleaner (an English girl). We put an advertisement on Facebook and a young woman (the daughter of someone we knew) applied. We engaged her and each Thursday she arrived and cleaned our house. Ann developed almost a parental affection for this young woman, who it turned out was an animal lover. Eventually Ann asked her if she would act as godmother to our dog, Daisy, and our two cats. Our fear was that we might die and leave the animals homeless.

She agreed willingly and almost became part of our extended family. She was written into our wills (at considerable expense) so that - if there was a dreadful accident - there would be no doubt about where our beloved animals would go. The wills were lodged at the Paphos court and we felt that an important safeguard was in place.

In May I withdrew €600 in order to meet a regular commitment. This was on a Wednesday and I just placed the money into my wallet. Our cleaner comes on Thursday and it was on Friday that I checked my wallet for the money. You can imagine my shock when I found there was only €500 there. I telephoned the bank in case the ATM was faulty. I had to withdraw another €100 to ensure I could make the €600 payment due on Saturday. No money was found in the ATM and so we reluctantly put it down to an error on someone’s part.

We questioned whether it could have been our cleaner but were convinced it could not be her. As a precaution (paranoia strikes) we moved my wallet and Ann’s money to pay gardeners and pool man into the study as it was my habit to retire there to write when the cleaner was in the house. On Thursday of this week, with Boris Johnson on the precipice of resigning, we sat down to watch the news and asked our cleaner to vacuum the study. Big mistake. Huge.

After she had left, Ann went to sort out our gardener’s money - which she kept in a drawer in the study. She reported that the money was not there, having checked it was all in order after breakfast that morning. A dreadful realisation dawned. I went into the study and found that my wallet was empty. There was only one conclusion to draw.

We wrestled with the situation and eventually Ann suggested that we telephone her mother. A very painful and tearful conversation ensued. Ann asked whether this had happened before and the mother told us that she had stolen money from her (when her daughter had access to her debit card and pin), and also from a previous employer. Her mother said she would repay every cent.

The following morning Ann sent her our bank details and the money is meant to be repaid next Wednesday. And then … to protect others I shall report the theft to the police, and am mulling over whether I should alert her current employers.

Our wills will have to be rewritten at considerable expense and we feel totally violated. If she is reading this, expect no sympathy. We shall never speak to you or acknowledge you again. You disgust me.