What are the consequences for stealing from someone's on-line bank while resetting their password via the mail. the amount was 1400£.

Will they be looking at jail?

I suppose it depends on whether they have any form for this kind of thing. It also depends on whether they are contrite, whether they have returned the money voluntarily or they have had to be discovered by the authorities and forced to return it.

If this is a first offence then I would have thought that jail would be very unlikely.

You want to give us a bit more detail?

The bank returned the cash and now are pressing charges, no history of doing fraud and its been at least 13 years since they were in trouble with the law (minor child offences)

How old are they now?

Are they in a partnership do they have children?

Are they employed?

Have they return the money to the bank?

You say that the bank are pressing charges – but the police involved yet and has this person been arrested yet?

Who's the victim of this crime? Is it someone who is known to the accused? Was the accused in a position of trust?

30 years old

No

No

Dunno

Involved but no arrests yet, just spoken to victim

There Dad, it was his son, they also used there brothers account without consent

Not enough information provided. For example:

How bad was the breach of trust (was there an abuse of a position of trust?).

Was it a single ‘one-off’ impulsive event? Or were there a number of events?

What effect did it have on the victim? A multi-millionaire May barely have noticed. A pensioner whose whole savings were taken may have found it devastating.

Has the offender previously been of good character?.

This, and a whole host of other factors are laid out in the Magistrates Court Sentencing Guidelines [p. 281] (I doubt this would be heard at Crown Court, which is where the most serious cases are heard and the maximum sentence is 10 years imprisonment).

Depending on those other factors I’d suspect category 5 harm for the value involved of £1400. Potentially as low as a Band B fine, possibly a medium range community order, but could be up to 26 week’s custody.

Bear in mind this is condensing down pages 281-287 of the Guidelines without much of the information used there to reach the decision, so may be “off the mark” depending on the factors shown.

There would also be a reduction given for a guilty plea, up to 1/3 if given at the earliest opportunity.

Edited to add:

it was his son, they also used there brothers account without consent

New info (provided while I was typing my response!) like that might change the category, harm, and culpability assessment.

There was a number of events and the said person had 50,000£. Yes the offender hasnt been in trouble with the police since was a teenager

So I understand that the person has effectively stolen from their own father. Has been out of trouble for about 15 years and has no offences on their record during their adulthood.

On the basis that the person is concerned about it and wants to do something about it, I suggest that they go to the police as quickly as possible. Put their hands up and make a statement admitting what they have done and showing contrition. Why did they need the money? Do they have a gambling habit or anything like that?

Also, maybe this person should be going to see a doctor and asking to be referred to a therapist. This might help from – but also it could carry weight if they eventually have to go to court and they want to make a plea in mitigation.

Thanks for your help.

There was a number of events and the said person had 50,000£. Yes the offender hasnt been in trouble with the police since was a teenager

Was there any loss, or even risk of loss, to the brother?

Were there underlying circumstances that could be used in mitigation? (as BF has stated)

Was/were the juvenile offence(s) one(s) of dishonesty?

As I’ve noted, there are MANY factors, and unless you go through all of the MCSG factors here, you'll only get, at best, a guide.

So, if (& it is by no means certain) the involvement of the brother’s account too, and this being a number of events rather than just a “one-off” results in a move of the culpability to 5A instead of 5B (p.284), the starting point (for £2,500 value!) is 36 weeks custody, rather than the medium level community order for 5B.

That is (of course, and that is where mitigation becomes key!) capable of being suspended, too.

1. No loss to brother

2. The money was used to pay debt collectors off threatening to take their possessions

3. There was a charge of battery and making off without payment (fuel), no insurance and tax.

There was many withdrawals but all on the same account, like 10 in total.

It can still be fraud by false representation if using the brother’s account created a risk of loss, even if there was no loss.

If there wasn’t even a risk of loss the accessing of brother’s account isn’t fraud by false representation but there may be computer misuse offence(s)

They transferred money to brothers account to withdraw from a atm. there was no loss on his behalf

Other than making it look like brother who was responsible, and who would have been the person whose account the bank would have taken back the sums from, at least initially.

For fraud by false representation, there doesn’t have to be an actual loss, merely risk of loss.

Whether they’d prosecute for this, or computer misuse, or just go for the “slam dunk” of father’s account remains to be seen.

What do you reckon are the chances of prison? (Best guess)

Still too many factors (see my previous about the multiple pages of the MCSG - lots of factors there that haven’t been touched on).

We haven’t even established the level of culpability, let alone mitigating or exacerbating factors.

Also, as previously mentioned, even if there was a potential custodial sentence, a good lawyer would aim to use mitigation to get it suspended.

Without all the details my “best guess” remains a ‘crystal ball’ prophesy.

Work your way through the MCSG : it is fairly clearly laid out and described all the factors the court (& probation service report to the Court) will use.

https://www.sentencingcouncil.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/Sept-2015-MCSG-pdf1.pdf

What do you reckon are the chances of prison? (Best guess)

Totally up to the judge at the end of the day and depends on circumstances.

If this guy is not even invited to the police station nothing will happen.

At this point he's been caught and nobody lost anything, so the police won't be interested despite a crime is still been committed as pointed out by others.

In my experience the police will do nothing.

Remember, the cps decides if a case goes to court, but without investigation by the police they won't even know about this.

The bank could start private prosecutions proceedings, but again, in my experience this is a very remote possibility.

Expect a slap on the wrist by a copper who would write a report and file it in a lost folder somewhere in the basement of their database.

If this guy is not even invited to the police station nothing will happen.

What about the £1400 stolen from the father?

What are the consequences for stealing from someone's on-line bank while resetting their password via the mail. the amount was 1400£.

At this point he's been caught and nobody lost anything

How on Earth is that “nobody lost anything”?