Fraudster pleads: don’t treat my family as guilty
AFRAUDSTERjailedafterstealingfrom his in-laws, and who allegedly stole thousandsof poundsfromacommunityeruv fund, has pleaded that his family should not be treated as “guilty by association”.
Dan Jacobs wrote to the JC this week from his prison cell in Wormwood Scrubs,afterbeingsentencedlastmonth to five years be-hind bars for five counts of fraud. He stole £120,573 fr o m hi s wife’s parents and elderly grandmother to fu n d hi s ga mbl in g addiction.
He is also alleged to havestolen£40,000fromthetrustestablished to oversee the construction of the Elstree&Borehamwooderuv,afteracting as its company secretary.
In his letter he admitted: “My actions are nothing to be proud of, wrong, almost barbaric. What I did to my own family was something people won’t ever be able to imagine.” But he added: “My family, my wife and children are vic- tims and not guilty by association. It is because of my actions that, for example, my son will have to celebrate his barmitzvah without his father present.”
He said he hoped his conviction would serve as a lesson to people suffering similar addictions. He warned: “For those people, please take action now, before it is too late.”
Meanwhile, Elstree & Borehamwood Synagogue, which Jacobs formerly belonged to, ha s re j e c t e d rumours that it has ostracised the fami l y an d has prev en t e d Ja c obs’ s son from ha v i n g hi s bar-
Jacobs, and his letter to the mitzvah at the shul.
A spokesperson said: “Borehamwood & Elstree Synagogue is pleased to welcome Mrs Jacobs and her family to our community for their simchah.
“We are currently working with the family to ensure that the occasion is celebrated appropriately.”