deception

[jojo17]

Can someone who has taken money (deposits) and failed to do as promised (money still supposed to be there) be tried for deception?.Still taking monies upto day caught out.

Deposits taken for trip which is not going to happen,even though we,ve been led to believe it was booked.Also this person sent out invoices for final balance(which we now know were made up figures)motives/reason unknown.But have a band of very disapointed children.

[fredpuli47]

Yes. Or simple theft. Either would do.Put simply,it's obtaining by deception to dishonestly make a statement which you know to be a lie in order to get someone to part with money and they then pay because of it ,when you intend to keep the money (or spend it ). This person has, at some point, done exactly that. (Even if they were genuine to start with, at some point they were dishonestly lying by asking for and getting money when they had decided not to book any trip or apply the money to one)

Simple theft is where someone has received money, genuinely or not, honestly or not, and decides to keep it or spend it for some other purpose than that for which it was handed to them.So if a cashier receives money, but later decides to keep it for themselves and takes it, that's theft. The same applies to treasurers of Christmas Clubs who take the money over months, intending to use it properly as the donors wish, but then disappear with the takings on December 23rd ! At the very least , this is just such a case.

[jojo17]

Thanks for your reply,

organisation looking into matter on our behalf,however as a parent concerned matter will be swept under carpet to avoid any neg publicity.

Just wanted to clarify position, so if ness we can take matter further ie police.

[pink-kittens]

Going to the papers is always a good one too

[fredpuli47]

Be careful about going to the papers ! Don't .. Before you do that , or think of it, get the police in. If you g to the papers first there's no telling what action for defamation might be launched or threatened. It might have no merit, in your view or anyone's, but it's best not to find out. ! It would be a serious libel , consisting ,as it would ,of the innuendo or plain statement that someone has committed a criminal offence! Remember that truth is a defence to libel, but far more so in theory than in practice and the costs run up before that is decided can be enormous.

Furthermore, getting the press in makes life difficult for any prosecutor later.It's better by far to have any admissions made to a police officer or some witness directly involved, than 'made' to some journalist (whether the journalist tapes the admissions or not) because a) journalists are not renowned for truth and b) there can be very big problems over the admissibility of such statements

The police are protected, as are you when you help them .

[Yorkie580]

Only a small point, and it would get pointed out during teh initial investigation, but the offence of "obtaining property by deception" has gone now and the offence would fall under the new fraud act - the most likely offence being fraud by false representation.

Good luck.

[fredpuli47]

Oops Yorkie, of course it is (and easier to prove too).Don't know what I was thinking of ( I really must start reading my supplements to Archbold, Criminal Pleading LOL !)