Charity worker stole £50,000 from disabled
A‘CALLOUS and calculating’ charity worker who stole more than £50,000 from 51 severely disabled adults has been jailed.
Faraz Ahmed, 22, worked as a finance assistant at the Macclesfield-based Rossendale Trust when he executed a two year fraud targeting dozens of extremely vulnerable people who he was employed to help.
The Rossendale Trust has six properties in Sutton and Macclesfield and employs 200 people who care for 70 adults with learning and physical disabilities.
Prosecutor Brian Treadwell told Chester Crown Court that
Ahmed, of Chelford Road, Macclesfield, was employed ‘in a position of considerable trust’ at the charity for a period of more than three years until April 2018.
He told the court that the money stolen affected 51 of the residents and totalled £51,730.
Those affected lost between £10 and £3,074, which was later reimbursed by the charity.
Mr Treadwell said the 19 residents who were unaffected either had connection to management or trustees of the charity or had family members who took a keen interest in their relative’s finances.
He said: “Residents’ money was held in a central charity bank account after being transferred from their family members.
“Each week residents would request funds, typically £50 per week for housekeeping costs and £50 spending money.
“The defendant would photocopy the request forms after forging entries for an increased amount and would pocket the difference.”
Ahmed would also keep for himself amounts from the trust’s bank account after withdrawals were made to put in a safe and covered his tracks by making erroneous entries in ledger spreadsheets.
Ahmed had earlier pleaded guilty to two counts of fraud and one of theft.
A victim impact statement from the trust was read to the court which said that Ahmed’s actions ‘undermined the very ethos of our organisation and everything we strive for’.
The trust said the crimes had had caused ‘significant reputational damage’ and had affected trust between residents’ families and the charity.
The statement added: “He knew how little these people had but he still stole from them.”
Defending Ahmed. Richard Dawson, said: “This is a tragic case for the residents and the charity but also a tragedy for the young person in front of you.”
He told the court that his client, who had no previous convictions, had obtained ‘an almost identical job’ earning £20,000 per year and had been volunteering for the past year for the Sue Ryder charity.
Recorder David O’Mahoney jailed Ahmed for 15 months.
Speaking after the sentencing, Steve Nichols, chief executive of the Rossendale Trust, said: “We are glad that this matter has reached its conclusion and wish to thank the police for their excellent support and commitment.”