CPS News Brief

Company Secretary charged with fraud and money laundering

Christopher Watson has been charged in relation to allegations of fraudulent activity undertaken from July 2008 to July 2014.

The allegations concern significant sums of money, in total involving almost £8m, which were electronically transferred from the company accounts to Christopher Watson’s own personal accounts and those of his private business interests. These sums of money were allegedly used to gamble, settle personal debts, and to buy and renovate properties.

John Werhun, specialist lawyer at the CPS said:

“The CPS has authorised the police to charge Christopher Watson with fraud by abuse of position of trust, and six counts of money laundering. Mr Watson was charged today.

“This decision was made in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors. After careful consideration it has been decided that there is sufficient evidence for a realistic prospect of conviction and a prosecution is in the public interest.

“Mr Watson will appear before Newton Aycliffe Magistrates’ Court on 24 June 2015.

“May I remind all concerned that criminal proceedings have now commenced and the defendant has the right to a fair trial. It is extremely important that there should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information online which could in any way prejudice these proceedings.”

 

Details of the charges:

Fraud, contrary to section 1 of the Fraud Act 2006

Six counts of money laundering contrary to section 327(1)(c) of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002

Response to media articles on HMCPSI/HMIC Report on the Provision of Charging Decisions

Recent articles in the Times and Telegraph have discussed the joint HMCPSI/HMIC Report on the Provision of Charging Decisions which was published last week. This report looked at the efficiency and quality of charging decisions made by both the police and CPS Direct (the CPS’s 24-hour charging service). The joint report acknowledged that the quality of charging has improved, however the report’s many positive findings were not reflected in these newspaper articles, such as the good, detailed feedback given to the police on charging requirements.

CPS Direct is available so that charging decisions can be made 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and over 285,000 decisions are made by CPS Direct annually. This is a vital service, and prosecutors understand that quick and correct charging decisions need to be made at all hours.

However, the report also said the service also relies on good quality police files being passed to the CPS, and a clear understanding of which charging decisions should be made by the police, and which should be made by CPS prosecutors. The HMCPSI/HMIC report identified a lack of clarity in this area particularly involving cases of domestic abuse, and so both the CPS and police agree a review of how the current system works would be a valuable exercise. The CPS welcomes the report, and will continue to strive to provide speedy, efficient and, most importantly, correct charging decisions as required.

51 year sentence for men in Leeds child sexual exploitation case

Four men have today been sentenced at Leeds Crown Court to a total of 51 years for child sexual exploitation.

Tariq Islam (sentenced to 13 years), Nasir Sultan (12 years), Amir Zaman (11 years) and Zafar Iqbal (15 years) were sentenced for committing rape and other sexual offences against a child aged 12 to 14 between May 2010 and September 2012 and were convicted by a jury yesterday.

Also convicted of offences of a sexual nature were Arshid Younis, Abid Younis, Farahk Younis, Junaid Rashid, Shazabe Hussain, Zafar Iqbal and Awais Butt. They will be sentenced at a later date.

Andrew Penhale, Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor, CPS Yorkshire and Humberside said:

“Ten individuals have been convicted of offences which involve a shocking catalogue of child sexual exploitation. The victim was targeted by older men precisely because of her youth and vulnerability. The offences involved an appalling breach of trust - the victim was groomed and plied with cigarettes, alcohol and drugs to make her compliant. The defendants then showed a complete lack of remorse for their actions, with ten of them claiming throughout the contested trial that the allegations were fabricated, or that they believed the victim to be over 16.

“The victim of these terrible crimes has shown immense courage, not only to make a complaint initially but to then give evidence in a long and complicated trial. The prosecution of these men could not have succeeded without her evidence. We hope that the convictions/sentences handed down today will help her to begin to rebuild her life.

“This was a complex and difficult matter to bring to court and prosecuting it has required extremely detailed and painstaking work. It demonstrates that the use of special measures such as screens or giving evidence over video-links, helps vulnerable victims of even the most horrifying sexual exploitation to give their account before a criminal court.

“The Crown Prosecution Service and West Yorkshire Police have the utmost determination to prosecute sexual abusers of children wherever we are able to and to support victims through the criminal justice process.”