24
Jan
Pair jailed after solicitor helped property developer ‘bend
rules’
A property developer was able to misuse more than half a million
pounds of loans for his own benefit after persuading a trusted
legal executive at a prominent firm of Yorkshire solicitors to
commit fraud for him. Franco Campagna, 34 of Barnsley, was jailed
for two years and four months and David Kitching, 64 of Leeds, was
jailed for 12 months after each admitted eight charges of fraud at
the Leeds Crown Court.
The Court heard that in 2007 and 2008 after Campagna had
difficulties meeting some financial obligations he took out some
short-term bridging finance on the buy-to-let properties he was
selling on to clients. They were receiving funds to purchase the
properties from financial institutions and when the money arrived
Kitching should have used it to discharge the bridging loans but
instead of doing so was asked by Campagna to discharge loans on
other properties belonging to him.
By the time the fraud came to light in 2009 they had misapplied
funds for eight properties totalling £537,655 with a
“potentially catastrophic” impact on the
solicitor’s firm which is now facing, at the very least,
increased insurance premiums to cover the financial liabilities,
the judge heard.
(Source: Yorkshire Post 18.1.12)