A man who tried to claim nearly £200,000 (almost €254,000) from Ladbrokes bookmakers with a forged betting slip has received a five-year suspended sentence from Judge Kevin Haugh at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.
Frank Duffy, originally from St Attracta Road, Cabra, Dublin, placed a £1.75 stake at 111,000/1 on picking five numbers from the British lottery and left the top line of the slip blank. The bookmakers retained the front copy of the betting slip.
The night he made the bet the bookmakers was burgled and, as well as a sum of cash, all the betting slip copies were stolen from the safe, as was microfiche film of the winning bets.
Duffy made an anonymous claim the following month through a local solicitors firm for the winnings, which totalled £199,447. The security manager became suspicious of the bet and informed gardaí, who were able to trace the bet back to Duffy through his solicitors.
Duffy (38) pleaded guilty to attempting to obtain money from Ladbrokes on Dowth Road on January 5th, 2000, by falsely pretending he had a valid ticket. He has 20 previous convictions, mainly for road traffic offences in his youth and had one for forgery.
Det Garda Niall O'Meara said it was his belief that Duffy "instigated and planned" the burglary for which no one was every charged. Duffy gave gardaí no co-operation concerning the burglary, but he didn't take part in it.
Judge Haugh said that although no one was ever charged with the burglary, he could not believe that Duffy did not know Ladbrokes would have difficulties in identifying the fraud. However because of his bad health, he could see no benefit in sending him to prison.
"He must have known there had been a burglary. He must have been working in cahoots with someone else who had knowledge of the premises and perpetrated the burglary.
"It was a sophisticated and audacious plan, and there is no coincidence that he sought to defraud Ladbrokes by forging a betting slip on the same day that their checking mechanisms had been interfered with. This makes matters very serious."
Judge Haugh said he couldn't take into account that Duffy was involved in the burglary, but was involved thereafter. He took into account that he pleaded guilty and because of his failing health.
"I can't see any good being served by sending him to prison but I still have to discourage him from getting involved in anything like this again."
Det Garda O'Meara told Mr Remy Farrell, prosecuting, that Duffy made the bet on December 4th, 1999, but was able to fill in the slip after watching the English lotto numbers being drawn that evening. That night all the winning betting slips were stolen.
He said Duffy was interviewed on February 23st, 2000, and made a statement supporting his claim for the money. The betting slip was sent to handwriting experts in the Garda Technical Bureau and they discovered that a different pen was used and the ticket was forged.
Ms Mary Ellen Ring SC, for Duffy, submitted to Judge Haugh that Duffy had to be given credit for his plea of guilty because it saved some witnesses from travelling from Spain.