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Victims of crime

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Sentencing tomorrow!

137 replies

Prayingmun · 15/01/2020 21:12

Please do not judge, I'm going to court tomorrow to be sentenced. I have plead guilty to 3 x fraud by misrepresentation.

2 years ago, I was working for a sex chat website and took money from 3 different men and went on to talk to them away from the website. I know I did wrong.

I'm so nervous I have a 5 year old little girl, I've never been in trouble before but can't help think I'm going to prison! What will I do! Does anyone know what I should be packing? Maybe the wrong site for this but I am going to be awake all night...

OP posts:
Zoflorabore · 17/01/2020 06:43

The lack of update is concerning. Hope op is ok.

AloneLonelyLoner · 17/01/2020 06:43

I've only just come on here but I send you my love and thoughts OP. It's shitty and unfair and you were just trying to survive.
I hope all went well. Thanks

dottiedodah · 17/01/2020 06:46

Firstly I am struggling too to see what your "crime " was .also how men are seen as "victims " sending money to a young hard up single Mum who they are using to get their rocks off! Surely not much different to kerb crawling which is illegal? Anyway I would hope that for a first offence you would be given a suspended sentence .Good Luck and sending some hugs to you xx

dottiedodah · 17/01/2020 06:52

Just hoping you have not been "sent down" .Grossly unfair system in this country that rewards wealthy men (15k FFS!) and penalises vulnerable young women .Seems its still a mans world doesnt it?

GiveHerHellFromUs · 17/01/2020 06:56

Grossly unfair system in this country that rewards wealthy men (15k FFS!) and penalises vulnerable young women .

Oh please get a grip. She broke the law and she accepts that she did. It's not a case of the system rewearing wealthy men, it's a system that punishes people who break the law.

TeachesOfPeaches · 17/01/2020 07:16

I've seen many cases in the press when men target older single women via dating sites and convince them to send them money with some bombastic promises/stories and then disappear. Even though the women willingly gave money, they've still been scammed.

lamalama · 17/01/2020 07:22

@TeachesOfPeaches Yes there were two sentences this week from Glasgow for just that. Usually these men don't get caught but thankfully they did this time.

DaveDave · 17/01/2020 10:00

I feel so sad that there is no update. It is ridiculous if she goes to prison for this. That poor little girl losing her mummy like that.

zoobincan · 17/01/2020 10:11

I feel so sad that there is no update. It is ridiculous if she goes to prison for this. That poor little girl losing her mummy like that.

Well we don't know the detail of what 'this' is, but £15k fraud (and that was only one of them) is quite substantial. I do feel for kids who have parents go into jail, however it is entirely preventable, but not breaking the law.

DaveDave · 17/01/2020 10:23

Yes we don't know all the facts. But I am guessing she didn't work for a chat line for fun. She said it paid her bills and that was it. Prison should be reserved for violent offenders, not desperate young women with children who can't pay their bills. There are other ways to 'punish' without prison - which will now have an impact on her entire life (and her child's). I feel Immensely sorry for her. Our justice system is deeply flawed.

Originalusernameunavailable · 17/01/2020 10:32

I think it’s more the fact that she admits she committed fraud. Yes the men used her, or rather the services she chose to offer by her own free will. She isn’t a victim.

DaveDave · 17/01/2020 10:35

Do you really think she deserves prison though?

tumpymummy · 17/01/2020 10:45

How did yesterday go OP? Really hoping you weren't sent down and have been celebrating instead?

Originalusernameunavailable · 17/01/2020 10:49

@DaveDave we don’t know the full circumstances so it would be unfair to say she does/doesn’t deserve prison.
I am simply saying fraud by misrepresentation is no light matter. I think if the men and sex part were removed from this part a lot of people would be thinking differently.

DaveDave · 17/01/2020 10:55

I don't think so. Say I am a cleaner. I work for cleaners r us. Three of my clients approach me and ask for direct cleaning. I say yes. Over three years I earn 15k from these three clients. Cleaners r us lose out on their commission, say 10k. They take me to court.

Do I deserve prison then? My first offence. I don't think so either. I am not a victim, I have done wrong, I should pay the money back etc? But prison? I don't think so. Benefits nobody.

Originalusernameunavailable · 17/01/2020 11:07

@DaveDave I see your logic but I repeat, we don’t know the exact details in OPs case. They don’t hand out custodial sentences lightly.

DaveDave · 17/01/2020 11:10

No, we don't, you are right there. Although I think they often hand out custodial sentences to the wrong people a lot. Sadly it happened to a family member, hence my passion about the subject.

GiveHerHellFromUs · 17/01/2020 11:15

@DaveDave was your relative guilty? Did they get charged incorrectly or do you just not think they should have been sent to prison for their crime?

AnchorDownDeepBreath · 17/01/2020 11:23

I don't think so. Say I am a cleaner. I work for cleaners r us. Three of my clients approach me and ask for direct cleaning. I say yes. Over three years I earn 15k from these three clients. Cleaners r us lose out on their commission, say 10k. They take me to court.

I don't think that would qualify as fraud by misrepresentation unless you approached the clients and they believed you were still working through the agency and therefore still have insurance or something... it's just fraud, otherwise.

There was a case near me late last year of a local woman who used details of men who had used a sex text service to contact the men. I can't remember if she ever worked for the text line or if she knew someone who did... anyway, she blackmailed one of the guys to get money, and for another couple, she sold them the usual pie-in-the-sky stories that are always in magazines with foreign waiters and the likes. Pocketed £42k, which she said was used to pay her bills. She was found guilty and people seemed pretty evenly split over whether she deserved to go to jail or not... the headlines were all around "Local woman turns to sex crime to pay rocketing bills" etc... at the trial, her bills weren't just rent and electricity, but holiday payments, clothes, Sky, take-aways. Bills from her POV, luxuries to others! I don't remember seeing what she was sentenced to in the end, but there's a lot to be said for the details of an individual case...

Without knowing what she did, what remorse has been shown and how much damage it did, it's hard to find a suitable treatment. One guy lost £15k. Were the others £500 each or £13k each? What happened to the money?

I hate the idea of anyone going to prison, but it's tough to judge what a suitable punishment is. Most places don't give custodial sentences out lightly, as prisons are so oversubscribed, although it does happen.

DaveDave · 17/01/2020 11:24

They were guilty, but it was non violent, non sexual, first time. 10 years later they still cannot get a job and live with the stigma. Thankfully they have a supportive family. It made me see that custodial sentences are not just for the time you are in prison. They are for life. They affect so many other people around you (and putting someone in jail is not cheap!). People that then cannot get a job when they are released are at a greater risk of reoffending. It initiated a vicious cycle of crime. Many people absolutely need to go to prison. Not all though - there are other options.

GiveHerHellFromUs · 17/01/2020 11:28

I think there needs to be more work done while people are in prison to ensure they can incorporate back into society when they get out, but I also think if you're willing to commit the crime you should prepare yourself for the consequences.

There are many non-violent, non-sexual crimes that can ruin the lives of other people.

We don't know how wide-spread the impact of OP's crime has been.

DaveDave · 17/01/2020 11:32

Well, I'm not going to go into the details here, it's not my story to do so. And we don't know the exact details relating to the OP. Neither am I a lawyer, Thank God!

I wish the OP all the best, and I hope there is practical and psychological support in place for the little girl if the worst has happened.

GiveHerHellFromUs · 17/01/2020 11:35

Oh no I agree - I'd never ask you to share those details. I do hope things improve for your relative and they get given an opportunity that can help them turn things around.

I also hope there's proper support in place for the little girl. It's sad that the innocent parties tend to end up the worst affected.

Strawberrypancakes · 17/01/2020 11:42

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

crustycrab · 17/01/2020 11:51

"I don't think so either. I am not a victim, I have done wrong, I should pay the money back etc? But prison? I don't think so. Benefits nobody."

I disagree, prison is not only a punishment, the possibility of it is also a deterrent.

If nobody was ever given a custodial sentence for their first fraud offence and simply were told to pay it back then everyone would be at it.

Defraud a company, work, friend, relative out of £50k and the worst that can happen is you get caught and have to pay it back? Hmm

No, the potential for a custodial sentence for all crimes benefits society. So all of us.

In this case I hope OP didn't get a custodial for her children's sake but that doesn't apply to all.

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