HELP! Suspected fraud - invalid ticket!

[LA12]

Hello,

 

Can someone please help me with this? I am new to CAG & I believe I could get some opinions from past expereinces?

 

I travel by train to work & this morning I was stopped because I had an invalid ticket in my rail card pass - this is a ticket I made on the computer as my little cousin likes to play with my pass & I don't like keeping my actual ticket inside just incase she loses it or damages it etc.

 

The ticket inspector said it could be inspected as fraud & is an exact copy so he took my pass from me.

I had my valid flexi passes in my hand to show him & explained this is a mistake & I have my valid ticket here but he wouldn't take this off me.

 

I have now read some stories online & I am seriously panicking like all the others that I might be sent to court, prison, criminal record.

 

I am willing to pay whatever I can to make this not appear in court wither it's £500 or £5000!

 

I have never been in trouble with the law & behind the invalid computerised ticket were all my other valid train tickets which I have purchased over the month - I am hoping this might go in my favour to show I do purchase my tickets?

 

Can someone please give me advice or anyone with info on what happened to them with similar circumstance?

 

I appreciate all the advice in advance.

Thanks,

[Old-CodJA]

I have to say that I seriously doubt whether anyone will accept your explanation as a plausible excuse for having made a forgery or fake ticket.

 

Most people would ask, if this was for a small child to play with, why not make a card that suggests being a ticket, but with no chance of it being mistaken for a real one?

 

We have prosecuted a number of cases over the last few years where people have made perfect copies for the use of friends, or family and it is relatively easy with modern printer/scanners, but the penalty for getting caught can be very severe.

 

As long as you were not actually using it, you may be lucky enough to get off with a very stern warning. Wait until the company write to you and come back and tell us what they say.

[Stonk73]

Hello,

 

Can someone please help me with this? I am new to CAG & I believe I could get some opinions from past expereinces?

 

I travel by train to work & this morning I was stopped because I had an invalid ticket in my rail card pass - this is a ticket I made on the computer as my little cousin likes to play with my pass & I don't like keeping my actual ticket inside just incase she loses it or damages it etc.

 

The ticket inspector said it could be inspected as fraud & is an exact copy so he took my pass from me.

I had my valid flexi passes in my hand to show him & explained this is a mistake & I have my valid ticket here but he wouldn't take this off me.

 

I have now read some stories online & I am seriously panicking like all the others that I might be sent to court, prison, criminal record.

 

I am willing to pay whatever I can to make this not appear in court wither it's £500 or £5000!

 

I have never been in trouble with the law & behind the invalid computerised ticket were all my other valid train tickets which I have purchased over the month - I am hoping this might go in my favour to show I do purchase my tickets?

 

Can someone please give me advice or anyone with info on what happened to them with similar circumstance?

 

I appreciate all the advice in advance.

Thanks,

 

Have I understood correctly: (i) you had in your possession both your real ticket and a copy; (ii) you first showed the copy and then the real one?

 

If that is the case, have any rules actually been broken? You were able to present a valid ticket on demand - job done.

 

Surely the copying of a ticket is not in itself illegal? Someone here will know. I know lots of people who photocopy their season tickets as a quick and easy way of retaining all the important information printed on it, in case of loss. You are not guilty of an offence until you actually commit it, and having in your possession a copied ticket that could *potentially* be used for fraud does not in itself constitute a fraud. I have a car that can go 155mph, but I don't expect to get charged in advance for the possibility that I might use it to do so.

Edited March 12, 2012 by Stonk73

[LA12]

I contacted the train station later in the day & was told the situation was passed to the police for investigation. I was told I should go down to the station or wait for them to come to me so I thought the right thing to do would be go down & try clear up the situation.

 

I was detained & charged with fraud & forgery. I am now waiting to find out if the PF will summon me to court to be prosecuted.

 

Yes I had more than 1 valid ticket on me which I tried to present after showing the computerised ticket by mistake but the ticket officer point blank wouldn't accept & ignored to hear me out & instead contacted the Police straight away for them to deal with.

 

I also had the majority of my previous tickets in my rail card so I thought this would go for me the fact it shows I do actually purchase my rail tickets.

 

I am unsure as to wither I will recieve a fine or instead a fine & a prosecution at court which can of course lead to a criminal record which I really want to try & avoid.

 

Thank you for both your responses... I really appreciate the replies.

[Justice_]

You need to contact an experienced criminal defence lawyer. Write down everything you said the ticket inspector and the police (no matter how pointless it seems now), before you forget it.

[rambo]

Conviction for fraud.

[Old-CodJA]

Any update on this one?

[timbo58]

I guess the argument is which ticket did the inspector (whichever grade he was) feel was being offered as a permit to travel?

 

If he felt the counterfeit ticket was the one being offered then an offence was liable to be reported.

 

The passing off a counterfeit as a deliberate aid to fare evasion is one of the most serious offences you can possibly make: far more serious than mere fare evasion since it shows a premeditated 'method of evasion'.

This is one of the primary reasons passengers have to use their tickets to go through a barrier line properly rather than just waving it at the gate staff as some feel more appropriate.

 

Anyway: all arguments are neither here nor there as whatever we say here may well be different to the way the bench of magistrates treats it if it goes to court.

 

Old Codja is the most experienced poster here: wait for his advice in relation to your input.

[Old-CodJA]

I guess the argument is which ticket did the inspector (whichever grade he was) feel was being offered as a permit to travel?

 

If he felt the counterfeit ticket was the one being offered then an offence was liable to be reported.

 

That is my view too timbo58. The fact is that if the traveller offered a faked ticket as his/her permit to travel, then the staff would be right to sieze and report the matter.

 

If a traveller opened his wallet and a forged or fake ticket could be seen, this would not necessarily be viewed as an 'attempt' under the provisions of the Criminal Attempts Act (1981), but it could be considered as chargeable under Section 25 of the Theft Act (1978) as 'going equipped to steal'.

 

If the traveller showed this fake ticket when asked to show a ticket for his journey it would appear to meet the evidential sufficiency to report an 'attempt to use a forged ticket'.