My ex has stolen money from our children.

[RainbowCrash]

I found out yesterday that my ex has withdrawn all the money from my ds and dd's savings account. I don't know why I'm shocked, this is hardly the first shitty thing he's done, but i am. It wouldnt be so bad if he had taken it when he was unemployed and paid it back, but i know it's been gone for over a year. In that time he has got a new job which pays well, taken one holiday and booked two more, bought ridiculously expensive new sunglasses, new clothes, all kinds of gadgets. I don't know if he's ever planning on paying it back. I'm just so angry and there's no-one I can talk to about this in real life.

Why can't you talk to anyone about it in RL?

I guess all you can do is set up new savings accounts for them that he has no access to and thank goodness he's an ex. What a git.

Has he taken it and put it out of your reach? I assume he was a signatory on the account?

Have you demanded it is repaid? How 'ex' is he? Could it be part of the divorce settlement? Added to the maintenance he should pay the DCs?

Well I think you have to talk to him about it and ask him how he is going to replace it - even if it is only a few pounds a month (given to you).
And then make sure the kids have new accounts that he doesn't know about and has no access to.

Who was the signatory on the account?

How do you know he hasn't set up accounts you cannot access and put the money there?

Thanks for the replies.
The accounts were set up after the children's christening so a lot of the people i'm close to in real life had put money into them. That's why I don't feel I can admit to them the money's gone.
He was the only signatory on the accounts, which was stupid of me. he told me the bank would only allow one name on the accounts.
I have texted him about re-paying it. He hasn't replied. I talked to him yesterday and he acted like it was no big deal. I think he will probably agree to repay the money slowly, along with maintenance. I'll put it into an account which he doesnt have access to. I just can't understand his attitude, he's lied about money before but this just seems so much worse.

it was only about six hundreds pounds so i know he wont have put the money anywhere. He'll have spent it. He's incapable of saving money.

I'd tell people what he's done. Tell them he duped you into putting it into his account (if the DCs were babies it's only theirs nominally, not legally). He lied about having one adult name on the accounts, clearly. Explain it that way and it protects you rather than defending him.

Is the financial settlement in the hands of a solicitor?

It's not something you need to admit to - it's his shame. I would tell people.

It's not stupid of you to have thought he could be trusted with his dc's money. None of it is your fault. Entirely his.