Sir, - The case of Patrick Foote, who was sentenced to seven years' imprisonment for defrauding 20 of his clients of a total of £203,000 (The Irish Times, June 9th), is one of only a handful of successful prosecutions for fraud in recent years. As a practising forensic accountant, I always recommend that fraudsters are prosecuted. This has the twin effect of identifying the individual to the wider community and also acting as a deterrent to others.
The type of custodial sentence handed down to Mr Foote is long overdue and sends out a clear message that this conduct deserves no sympathy. Unfortunately, though the number of successful prosecutions is rising, still too few are brought to justice and this is in part a reflection of the outdated criminal law in this area.
There is also a tendency to glamorise fraud - even the language used to describe it, such as "white collar crime", separates it from other crimes. But this should not detract from the fact that fraud is crime. Fraud is also theft and results in financial losses.
In this high-profile case, the victims were not millionaires, but individuals who entrusted their mortgages and life's savings to Mr Foote. Their trust was abused and their money was lost. You might wonder why they trusted him with their savings. Probably because, on the face of it, he appeared to be a normal, respectable businessman and member of the local community. However, he used their money to prop up his own ailing building company. To prevent this kind of crime in the future, the public needs assurance that any person who offers financial services of any sort is both suitably qualified and subject to a strict regime of monitoring and supervision. In this case neither of these controls appears to have been in effect.
The message is clear. Before parting with any money make sure you know who you are giving it to, what they are going to use it for and where the money will be going. Most importantly, ask yourself what assurance you have that this person is who he/she says they are. I have often advised my clients to check to the person's professional indemnity insurance cover. This will usually sort the sheep from the goats. - Yours, etc.,
Peter Johnson, Director, James Hyland and Company, Forensic Accountants, South Terrace, Cork.