Two siblings from Birmingham have been given jail sentences in relation to a charity fraud case.
Rajbinder Kaur and her brother Khaldip Singh Lehal were both sentenced on 9 January after being found guilty of fraud relating to funds donated to Sikh Youth UK (SYUK), an organisation they ran.
Kaur has been given a jail sentence of two years and eight months for money laundering and six counts of theft, amounting to £50,000 donated to SYUK.
A former banker, Kaur transferred funds from SYUK to her own bank account, paid off her personal debts and sent funds to others including her family members, according to the West Midlands Police.
The police said she had over 50 personal bank accounts in an attempt to complicate the flow of stolen money.
Kaur was also found guilty of providing false or misleading information to the Charity Commission to cover up the theft.
Her brother Lehal was convicted for knowingly or recklessly providing false or misleading information to the commission and given a four-month sentence, suspended for 18 months, with 80 hours of unpaid work.
The commission stated in a press release: “It’s a significant step for individuals to be convicted for providing the Charity Commission with false or misleading information, under section 60 of the Charities Act 2011, and the sentences underline how seriously the courts take this crime.”
‘A very long and complex investigation’
SYUK applied to register with the commission in 2016 but failed to provide the necessary information so was never registered as a charity.
Nevertheless, it received several donations during fundraising events including a sponsored winter sleepout and a football tournament both in 2018.
In October 2018, West Midlands Police notified the commission of concerns relating to the organisation’s receipt and use of charitable funds and the regulator opened its own statutory inquiry.
The commission worked closely with the police but both entities carried out their separate investigations.
Commenting on the pair’s convictions in September, West Midlands Police superintendent Annie Miller said: “Kaur tried to portray herself as someone naïve about financial matters despite having worked in a bank.
“SYUK was clearly a means to fund her lifestyle and pay her debts off, but in the simplest of terms, Kaur was stealing large amounts of money that had been donated by local people for good causes.
“This has been a very long and complex investigation into fraud, and we’ve worked closely with the Charity Commission to bring this pair to justice.”
‘Theft of charity funds for personal gain won’t be tolerated’
Tim Hopkins, the commission’s deputy director for specialist investigations and standards, said: “We welcome the strong message given today that the theft of charity funds for personal gain wont’ be tolerated by the courts.
“Additionally, both siblings’ criminal convictions for providing false or misleading information to the Charity Commission highlights how seriously the courts take the offence.
“We’ve worked closely with the police on this case to make sure that these actions didn’t go unpunished.
“In working together, the commission and the police were able to effectively deliver justice, as well as uphold public trust in charitable giving.”
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