Someone Stole £1,500 From My Father On His Deathbed - And Got Away With It!

[Danger_Mouse]

Hi everyone.

 

I'm new to the forum, and I really need some help!

 

Here's a (very) brief summary of my plight: Back in June, my dear father died of brain cancer. during the last few days of his life, and for a day or two after he'd passed away, someone had ruthlessly helped themselves to his Halifax credit card. In all, approximately £1,500 worth of goods were purchased -- cigarettes, a personalised bottle of expensive whiskey, a computer from PC World (including a registration to Norton Antivirus) and clothing from very.co.uk.

 

I notified both the police and Halifax of the crime. I provided the details of the alleged perpetrator (a close family member). Halifax investigated the case, concluded that fraud had taken place, and refunded the money; however, they will not proceed to notify the police of their findings -- they state that it is not in their policy to prosecute. The police will not investigate the incident -- they have advised that it is Halifax who are the victims of the crime, not my late father and his family.

 

As it stands, the person responsible for the crime will not be held responsible for their actions. The person who's bedroom I found one of the stolen cards in; the person who had the Whiskey they purchased for their boyfriend's birthday inscribed with his name; the person who registered the purchased antivirus software in their name; the person who's wearing the lovely new cloths they purchased using my dying father's credit card, while they're sitting opposite me at the table right now -- laughing at me!

 

Surely something can be done here?! Can anyone help? This is NOT about the money; this is about holding a criminal responsible for their actions.

[stu007]

Hi

 

I would advise having a look at the Action Fraud Website - www.actionfraud.police.uk/

These are a few examples from there website:

 

Abuse of Position of Trust -

 

This is when someone abuses their position of authority or trust against another person for personal or financial gain, or to cause loss to another. A person of trust or authority could be a friend, family members, service personnel eg carers, or a company employee.

 

Bank Card and Cheque Fraud -

 

Bank card and cheque fraud happens when criminals steal your cards or chequebook and gain access to funds in your account. Criminals steal your bank cards or cheque book; or they obtain your card or account details, allowing them to take money from your account or run up credit in your name. You'll usually notice this by seeing unfamiliar transactions on your statements, or suddenly finding that you've exceeded your overdraft limit or credit limit and your card is refused when you try to make a purchase.

[Danger_Mouse]

Thanks for the reply, stu007

 

I'll certainly check the information you've provided. However, the person that I, and my family, believe to be responsible is a minor, so I'm not sure if 'abuse of trust' is directly applicable. However, we believe that the person who did this may have been influenced by her boyfriend and his family -- her boyfriend is not a minor.

 

Despite my efforts so far, the police are simply not interested -- they consider Halifax to be the sole victims of the crime. I even reported that my mother also had her debit cards stolen, as well as cash from her house.

 

My mother is a vulnerable adult -- I have power of attorney for her affairs. I am also the executor of my late father's estate -- even my solicitor has written to Halifax without any results. They simply will not provide any information to the police.

[stu007]

Hi

 

Have you not already posted a thread on this issue which I have responded to, if so please keep to the one thread rather than post multiple threads as you will get better advice that way.

 

If I am wrong please accept my apology.

[Danger_Mouse]

Oooops... I'm really sorry! I Tried to move my post to a more applicable thread. I'm new, here -- I'm not used to forums and still trying to get to grips with things.

[honeybee13]

Threads merged. Please continue to post on this one.

 

My best, HB

[Surfer01]

The way the police are looking at it is if you saw a crime being committed, unless the victim complained there was no crime? So you could report a murder but because the victim never complained no crime investigation? I think the police have it wrong on this?

[LaughingGirl]

No, they don't unfortunately. As Halifax agreed fraud had taken place and refunded the money, they have taken the financial hit, and are therefore the 'victims'. It's up to them to report the fraud to the Police.

 

The fact that they won't is surprising - in these days of retail loss prevention, you would think that at the very least they'd take civil action to recoup the money that they had to repay. They may however take the view that as the person concerned is a minor, they're unlikely to see any money come back to them and it's simply not worth the effort.

 

The only thing that comes to mind is that when someone I know had their cards stolen and used by the 'child' (she was nearly 16) of a close friend, the Police did agree to come to the house and effectively read the riot act to her. I know that's probably not the outcome you're looking for, but it did knock the cocky edge off her. How old is she? Do you know if she's going to be stopped from seeing the boyfriend?

 

I'm extremely sorry for your loss, and for everything else that has happened.

[Danger_Mouse]

Thanks, everyone, for all your help and support. To answer a few questions, the person in question is 15 years old (she'll be 16 in March). To be honest, LaughingGirl, I'd be happy if an officer did 'read the riot act' to her -- at least she'd know she's been caught. As it stands, she thinks no one knows about it. Horrible, isn't it? That was her dying GRANDFATHER she stole from. Her grandfather took her in when her mother abandoned her. He looked after her, and this is how she repaid him. But don't feel too sad -- after all, Halifax are the real victims here(!)

 

She's practically living with the boyfriend. Her mother was ordered to take responsibility for her by social services -- given her track record, there won't be any discipline from her.

 

Anyway, I digress... this is a consumer forum after all. Back to the point... I've emailed the CEO at Halifax -- I'm not expecting a reply, but I hope he feels proud of how helpful his employees have been(!)

 

I've also forwarded my story to a few online magazines... let's hope someone publishes it.

 

Perhaps I should ask the police about the fact that cash was also reported as stolen... it seems as though this has been overlooked(?)

[huggy41]

i'd let her know that you know and are going to tell everyone

[reallymadwoman]

If she's 15 and practically living with a boyfriend Social Services need to be nagged as well.