Kindness repaid with fraud lands man two years behind bars

A 39-year-old St Paul's Bay resident has been jailed for two years after he admitted to misappropriating €4,216 using a cheque book he had found in a borrowed car in 2013.

Konrad Cassar was charged with misappropriation, forgery and use of false documents in relation to the crimes, which were committed in November 2013 and the preceding months. He was also accused of committing an offence whilst out on bail.

A police sergeant had testified to how that November, Carmelo Abela and Antonia Scicluna had filed a report at the Qawra police station. They had said that they had just returned from a month abroad and had found their HSBC accounts drained of all but €700. Bank inquiries then revealed that a number of transactions had been made while they were away – several cheques had been issued, all in the name of one, Konrad Cassar. The value of the cheques added up to €4,216.

The couple told the police that they knew Cassar. Before going abroad, the male victim had allowed Cassar to use his van for his daily visits to hospital. Abela had forgotten his chequebook in the van, providing the opportunity Cassar needed to help himself to the contents of Abela's account.

The court was told that Cassar had written no less than 19 cheques to himself.

Fortunately for the victim, the bank had eventually refunded the amount misappropriated.

Magistrate Consuelo Scerri Herrera noted that the accused already had six prior convictions, amongst them, for theft, and that the crime had been committed whilst Cassar had been out on bail.

Cassar was found guilty on his own admission and sentenced to two years imprisonment.

The court instructed the director of prisons to assist the man to overcome his drug problem.

Inspector Maurice Curmi prosecuted.