A Bank of Scotland customer service adviser who embezzled £39,000 from the bank accounts of two elderly women to give to his friends has been jailed for nine months.

Sean Adams, 30, made a number of withdrawals from Esme McKay and Christina Drummond's accounts. His crimes came to light when Mrs McKay's daughter checked her mother's statement when she was not able to look after her own finances.

She spotted 11 withdrawals of £1200 and the incident was referred to the fraud department. Investigations uncovered another elderly lady's account had been targeted by Adams.

At Glasgow Sheriff Court he pleaded guilty to embezzling £39,000 between August 2012 and August 2013 while working as a customer service adviser at the Pollokshields branch of Bank of Scotland.

Sheriff Sam Cathcart told him on Tuesday that the "only appropriate means of dealing with him" was with a custodial sentence because of the gravity, amount involved and breach of trust.

He jailed Adams for nine months, reduced from 13 months. Adams, from Paisley, Renfrewshire worked as a customer service advisor at the bank in September 2013.

Mrs McKay and her daughter went into the branch on Albert Drive, Glasgow, to sort her finances. The court heard that after her husband died in July 2013 she wasn't able to look after her own money.

Procurator fiscal depute John Bedford told the court: "When checking through the complainer's listed transactions for the previous three months her daughter noticed 11 withdrawals of £1200 that appeared to be unexplained.

"Mrs McKay maintained that she had not withdrawn the money. The incident was referred to the fraud department at the bank. Further inquiry carried out by a fraud investigator revealed Adams' unique access code had been used to process these unauthorised withdrawals."

There were no withdrawal slips archived for the transactions and £1200 is the maximum Adams could authorise a customer withdrawing without presenting documents or getting approval from a manager.

CCTV from the branch captured Adams at the counter in August 2013 at the time that two transactions were made on Mrs McKay's account.

He was interviewed and admitted taking money from Mrs McKay's account and "giving it away to friends and people he would like to be friends with", but denied taking money from any other accounts.

Mr Bedford added: "The accused after making these submissions became very upset and tearful and told the interviewers various troubling personal details which he seemed to be suggesting had contributed to his behaviour."

He was suspended at the end of the interview and later resigned. The court heard bank employee Jane Sheret carried out checks on other transactions carried out by the accused over a similar time frame.

Mr Bedford said: "During these checks a number of similar suspect transactions were discovered to have been carried out by the accused on the accounts of another elderly female customer - Ms Drummond."

Between, October 2012 and July 2013 a total of 23 transactions each of £1200 were made on her accounts.

Although elderly and frail she was able to provide a statement to police that she had no knowledge of the money being taken.

It was said on his behalf that Adams' position was that his mental state was at the root of the offences and that he has signed his pension to the bank to start repaying the money and plans to make monthly repayments.

Defence lawyer Manus Tolland said: "This is undoubtedly an offence which will be a blight on his character for the rest of his life."