Man sentenced for forgery

Defrauding an acquaintance of several hundred dollars has earned a man a short stint in jail.

Lenard Joseph Moorman approached a friend Sept. 6 and asked him to deposit an $800 cheque he received from the sale of his truck. Moorman explained he didn’t have his own bank account at the time.

The friend refused the request at first, but finally agreed after Moorman pestered him for nearly three hours. The friend deposited the cheque but, because of a daily withdrawal limit, was only able to give Moorman $500. He returned the next day and withdrew the remaining $300.

His bank later advised him the cheque was no good, but when he tried to contact Moorman, he discovered Moorman had blocked his phone number and Facebook account.

Moorman, 26, pleaded guilty Thursday in Lethbridge provincial court to one count of uttering a forged document, and was sentenced to 30 days in jail.

Crown prosecutor Bruce Ainscough pointed out Moorman, who appeared by closed-circuit TV from the Grand Cache Institution west of Edmonton, is serving a federal sentence for a similar offence.

Duty counsel lawyer Brett Carlson told court Moorman was on parole when he gave his friend the bad cheque. He said his client was also using methamphetamines and carfentanil at the time. During a “moment of clarity” two days later, he gave himself up to police.