AIBU to be pleased that the fare dodger has been named

[northlight]

I cheered when I read this.

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/aug/02/millionaire-city-executive-dodged-43000-rail-fares-unmasked

In fact I think he's not only guilty of the offence but I hope if he's prosecuted the court will take into account that he tried to hush it up.

I agree with glittery. People make poor choices all the time and at the end of the day sometimes you have to pay the consequence. In this situation people are prosecuted and made to pay a fine etc he knew what he was doing and yet the train company were happy not to prosecute him.i really do hate a society that has different set of rules

Thank you Magnificent, that was exactly what I was trying to say [very badly I suppose].

I have to say I'm with Nutcracker on this one! Well done him for getting away with it - the consequence is he's lost/ resigned from his job and may never work in the industry again due to trust issues.

In my own personal experience, I pay £4,5k for my season ticket to stand an 1.5hr in to London; I misplaced my ticket which sat at the ticket office for a month eventhough I contacted them, but it's not their policy to contact me once found; i was issued a replacement at my expense. Then I became I'll and stopped working, tried to refund my season ticket but guess what? They don't refund replacement tickets so effectively I am now paying for a season ticket I am not using.

So really - who is more corrupt? Someone who played the system or the actual train companies who get away with murder?

The poor service offered by the train companies doesn't minimise his dishonesty or mitigate his actions.

We can all bring tales of shoddy service on train travel and I can't think of anyone who's happy to pay £££ for the service. We have little choice over that. What we can control, however, is how we deal with this daily, for years on end. Fare-dodging is wrong and it's a choice this guy made. He could have moved closer to his office, for example, if he didn't agree with paying the money. Oh, he's a clever guy, he could have come out with some other options.

I think it's fair he lost his job if part of his employment requirement was probity.

Im astonished he did the evasion in first place and so long,given he is so affluent
His job requires an absolutely clear record and financial probity,its a huge job he lost
I cant fathom why he did this?thrill of getting one over?because he could?lackadaisical?

I think the trains are criminal and rob us every single day i was gob smacked the last time I had to go on train, the over crowding on a saturday at late afternoon! It was a disgrace, the elderly crushed in, feeing bad for going into 1st not even for a seat, but just to be able to hold into something when train moved, awful. i cant get upset about this man, i really cant.

I am with you nutcracker and I'll go a step further and I am thinking 'poor bloke' to be totally honest.

I'm rather surprised that anyone can feel sorry for a fraudster who's used his money and position to cover up what he did.

Poor bloke? Really??

I don't see it as using his money and position exactly. More a panic and wanting to just frantically sort it out and get on with his life.

I bet the sheer shock was enough and he wouldn't have done it again. As it is he has lost his job - will he get another? Will the country, will anyone actually gain anything through this? I just don't think they would. Over a period of years it probably just became the norm to him, he probably didn't even think about what he was doing.

I think the naming and shaming, the jail sentence, lost job and large amount of money have been just over the top. Sorry but I do.

Well it wasn't a sarky post sheep so yeah, really :)

I think this punishment is completely disproportionate given that he paid the money back and that it wasn't a violent crime or anything. I mean, his life is ruined to all intents and purposes.

I have to admit I've done stupid stuff like this and I don't think I'm a bad person! I just think as I said it is disproportionate and over the top.

A panic?

Seemingly he's not sorry he stole or he would have stopped. He's sorry he got caught so he tried to hush it up as he had the money to pay.That doesn't deserve any sympathy in my opinion.

I know ilovesooty but I guess what in saying is I understand how when you do something every day it becomes the norm. It's difficult to explain really but I guess I see a difference between this and transferring that sum of money to a bank account. I won't be any good at articulating why - I do see them as different though. I guess because the train is going there anyway!

I suppose this is something I can if I am honest imagine myself doing. If I got on a train in a rush say which has happened and planned to buy a ticket on the train but no one checked I wouldn't think how awful I was stealing from national rail, I'd think 'great!' So would most people I know! So I can see how this mans thought process went.

And I can imagine how the cold realisation of the gravity of the situation would hit you as you realised the costs and then desperately tried to put things right - only to realise actually you can't. And I do feel sorry for him. He isn't a murderer or a rapist: obviously he has done the wrong things but so have I on many an occasion so I do feel sympathy for him.

Exactly Itsjust

I struggle to see this guy as the odious evildoer that some of you do.

Yes, he did the wrong thing. But I don't believe it was a calculated theft of £40,000.

I think what happened was he forgot to touch in one day, was charged £7 and there no questions asked.

So easy that not touching in became a habit and he was saving £13 each day. Who knows, he may have felt something like some posters here and was getting 'one up' on the 'greedy' train companies who increase the fares each year without producing a better service. Not laudable or clever but perhaps understandable. I think we all enjoy our little victories in life.

However the problem is he got away with it for 5 years and his little victory against the train company ended up totalling a rather large amount. He finally got caught and is now paying for it.

I just don't get this sense of hysterical moral outrage where he should be named and shamed and vilified for something which yes, was not completely honest but also was not a depraved or callous act which has left pain and suffering in it's wake.

I personally don't believe that ANY of us are whiter than white and can honestly say we have never ever done anything that others might disapprove of or would find dishonest, whether that be fare dodging or stealing sachets of sugar. Therefore I am not condoning this man's actions but I would not want to join in the finger pointing and stone throwing.

I woke for a train company.

Every single fecking day I hear...

Ohhh it's an emergency I need to get to x hospital......
ohhhh I have a job interview at y.......
ohhhh I only have 20p on me......

Please let me travel for free, please it's just this once, I won't tell anyone, pleassssseeee, I always pay and I never get a seat, pleaseessssse, why are you being such a BITCH.

This happens about 2-4 times in one 8 hour shift.

Most of them are well dressed, well spoken, expensive briefcases and watches.

Fucks me off no end. I'm surprised so many people are outraged, as to me it's so common. people will always do what they think they can get away with plus serious entitlement issues.

I'm glad the cockwomble had to pay it all back!

From what I've read about this, though, he bought a season ticket every year until 2008, when he stopped buying one even thoughn he was still commuting to London. Presumably that was the point he realised he could defraud the train company.

Yes, trains can be overcrowded and the system for payments isn't great. But do you know what, my local Tesco is quite often short staffed and the self-service checkouts are a nightmare. That doesn't mean that it's ok to walk out without paying for 2/3 of your goods week after week.

Jonathan Burrows is a thief, pure and simple. He should be prosecuted accordingly.

Crikey!!!!!

Well I always wondered how my old university boyfriend got along in life after we lost contact and now I know!!!! :(

He was a really good, kind, super bright guy over 20 years ago... Really saddened to read this today that he has behaved this way. Seems very out of character from the person I once knew. How sad :(

I am really shocked at some of the sympathy bring expressed on here for him - have you any idea how 'ordinary' people are treated in the criminal justice system for things like not paying for their TV licence , council tax and desperate( ie not organised ) shoplifting? No thought not - try being black, poor, from the wrong part of town, the wrong class. The moral bankruptcy bring rxpressed( and on the thread about not paying for your meal) really saddens me

Trains arent criminal.they dont rob you.the service is inadequate and costly
That is in no way a reason to wilfully chose not to pay for service received
Inadequate service cannot justify His actions.he was a chancer,he got caught

This isnt some plucky traveller getting one back for the ordinary folk.he's a chancer
Millionaire avoiding paying for a service.he purposefully chose not to pay
And yes he was appropriately dealt with,considerable consequences too

I'm a bit undecided on this one. Probably blame the train company the most for not checking. There far fast far far more important things to get outraged on.

I fare dodged a few times when I was an intern in London and could barely afford to rent and eat. Got caught once paid 20 quid.

Punishment wasnt disproportionate.forseeable consequence of his actions
Some jobs you're required to declare any police contact or caution.
In his job there was expectation of probity.he was unable to demonstrate that

BitchPeas some of those 'excuses' may actually be genuine once in a while you know

Expat your ex boyfriend is probably still the good, kind and bright man you once knew. People are multi-faceted. None of us are all good or all bad. And it was fare dodging, not something to be proud of I accept, but he's not turned out to be a psychopathic serial killer!

Bourdic I would feel the same if JB was poor, black, from the 'wrong part of town'. For what it's worth I myself am white but definitely not well off or from the upper classes. What I think you are saying is that it's one rule for the elite and another for the lower classes. I agree with you [just look at the politicians and their allowable 'expenses' - they make a 'mistake' and have been allowed to quietly pay it back whereas the rest of us in a similar role would probably be prosecuted]. So, no I don't think it's right that JB was apparently given the option to quietly pay the money back whereas someone else in a different 'class' might have been immediately prosecuted. But this is the system that needs review. It's not an additional stick to beat JB. He was taking advantage of an offer that was made by Southeastern and I think it's very understandable that he took it [although it's now massively backfired on him with all the negative publicity].