Police restrain fraudster Patrick Baker’s inheritance. Now 68, and living in Newton Abbot, Devon, Baker’s inheritance was acquired to fully compensate his victims
Two fraud victims who had just over £70k stolen over a decade ago have had all their money returned out of the offender’s inheritance thanks to work by the South West Regional Organised Crime Unit (SWROCU) and Dorset Police.
One of the victims, who was a childhood friend of the fraudster’s wife at the time, had £52,493 stolen after being repeatedly pressurised to send money between 2014 and 2015. He told her he was waiting for a ‘big deal’ to come off, but in the meantime could not pay his mortgage and bills and their family home was at risk.
The other victim, who is now in her 90s, was a former colleague of the fraudster. She was told similar lies and transferred £20k to him in 2015, which he never returned.
When the fraudster, who’s now 68, was sentenced in 2019, he was found to have made £72,493 because of his crimes. However, a confiscation order was only made for £1,000 due to a lack of funds he had available.
In March 2023 Dorset Police, who investigated the offences, became aware that he had received inheritance and referred the case to the SWROCU’s Asset Confiscation Enforcement (ACE) team, which specialises in revisiting cases where offenders have not paid back the money they made through their crimes.
SWROCU ACE Team Manger Amanda Alldridge said: “It was brilliant work by Dorset Police to identify the fact he had come into this inheritance. We were keen to take the case on and ensure the money he received went to the victims he stole from, not to him.
“Both women were delighted to get their money back after all this time, though it has clearly been a long and stressful period for them.”
On receiving the compensation, the victim who had £52,493 stolen said: “I’m incredibly grateful for all the hard work and persistence of all teams involved. I never in my wildest dreams expected to get my money back. I never thought that I would see it again…and that is all down to your teams, thank you so much.
“I’m not sure if I am going to do anything special with the compensation, but it makes me feel more secure as I get older.”
Detective Constable Declan Cummings of Dorset Police’s Economic Crime Unit, who carried out the original investigation that saw him convicted of the crimes, said: “We remain committed to relentlessly pursuing criminals to ensure they do not profit from their offending and victims are properly compensated. As highlighted by this case, we will work to ensure the Proceeds of Crime Act is applied when new assets become available long after the crime has taken place.”
The fraudster who lived in Blandford, Dorset at the time he carried out the offences, was found guilty in 2019 at Bournemouth Crown Court of two counts of fraud. He was sentenced to four years in prison.
He had previously received a suspended sentence in 2017 after pleading guilty to fraud by abuse of position and fraudulent evasion of VAT.
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