Boss jailed for Comic Relief con
A CHARITY chief is in jail for cheating Comic Relief in a £ 20,000 fraud so he could have a life of luxury.
Three staff lost their jobs at the Mental Health Action Group and 100 vulnerable people were left without support because of chairman David Ekert’s crimes.
He told a local newspaper his charity, based in East Yorkshire, faced closure as a Comic Relief grant was unpaid in a “mix-up”.
A near-£10,000 grant was paid after the publicity but within days Ekert, 59, had siphoned off about a third.
He used the charity’s credit card on jaunts to Spain, Barbados and a spa, Hull crown court heard. In total he stole £20,779.
Ekert was jailed for a year after admitting fraud and theft. Redundant staff member Rita Purdue, who re-started the charity in a smaller form, wept in court as he was taken to cells.
Comic Relief said it will try to recover funds stolen. ONE in four women have an average £2,500 stash of “exit cash” they keep secret from their husbands, found autoeurope.co.uk.