A carer who was part of an organised crime gang that stole £360,000 from victims in an elaborate telephone scam has been struck off.

Carli Davidson was part of a group that conned bank customers into transferring cash to accounts under their control.

They worked across Clydebank in West Dunbartonshire and the Drumchapel and Yoker areas of Glasgow, with victims identified in a number of locations including Aberdeenshire and Northern Ireland.

The large-scale mule and vishing fraud operated between December 2013 and April 2014, with one victim duped into handing over £263,356 of his life-savings.

In total, six people were defrauded out of £359,473.

The gang was caught following an investigation by Police Scotland's economic crime and financial investigation unit.

In February this year, ringleader Mark Miller was jailed for 28 months.

Glasgow Sheriff Court heard that he spent almost £2000 on an all-exclusive holiday to Mexico and bought three Audi A3 cars, an Audi TT and an Audi Q7 and then bragged on Facebook about spending money upgrading them.

He also bought two jet-skis for £12,500 and deposited £11,480 into an account he had access to.

Davidson was spared jail after pleading guilty last December to her part in the scam and was instead sentenced to a Community Payback Order.

However, she has now been struck off from the care register following a Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) hearing last month.

The support assistant had worked for Bupa at a Glasgow care home between 2012 and 2015, but has since switched profession and was now said to be "building a new career within the recruitment sector".

A presenter told the SSSC panel that Davidson's actions "raised fundamental issues" about her "integrity and honesty".

The panel agreed and stated that her fitness to practise was impaired on the grounds of her conviction as it "fell short of the standards expected of a social service worker".

Striking her off the register, the panel stated: "The absence of any information from you was a very significant factor in the panel's decision-making.

"There was no information from you to demonstrate any insight or attempts at remediation of your behaviour.

"There was little background information and no explanation for the behaviour that had resulted in the conviction."

The panel added: "The consequences of your behaviour were very serious.

"It had consequences for the general public and had potentially very serious consequences for the reputation of the profession.

"It represented planned and deliberate behaviour in the context of serious organised crime.

"The panel therefore concluded that the only appropriate order was an order for removal from the register."