Forths are delighted to announce another success in their Criminal Defence department.

Following investigations, by the Forths Team, a number of indictments of Theft against the Treasurer of a Masonic Hall have been dropped.

It was averred, by the Crown, that over the course of a two year period the Treasurer had transferred funds, from the bank accounts of the Masonic Hall, to bank accounts in his name and / or controlled by him for his own gain and that, accordingly, the Masonic Hall had lost the benefits of these funds and had indeed incurred additional bank charges / interest as a result of the actions of the Treasurer.

The team at Forths were able to prove that, whilst such amounts had been remitted to connected bank accounts, they had been subsequently repaid and indeed, the amounts that had been repaid were in excess of those originally claimed to have been stolen, such that overall the Masonic Hall had benefited from such activity (from a financial perspective).

Richard Forth, Managing Director at Forths stated that:

“This case highlights that it is imperative that all aspects of a set of related transactions are reviewed in the context of criminal cases in order that a full and proper picture of such can be presented to the Court.”

Author – Forths Forensic Accountants