Caernarfon man defrauded his 'kind' dad of more than £21,000

Peter Jones made repeated transactions, cash withdrawals and bank transfers using his dad’s account between August 2023 and May 2024, telling him “continued lies” all the while.

The 45-year-old, of North Road, was sentenced to 18 months’ imprisonment, suspended for the same time period, at Caernarfon Crown Court on Tuesday (August 18).

He previously pleaded guilty to three counts of fraud by false representation.

Prosecutor Joshua Gorst said in the summer of 2023, Peter Jones was living at the home of his father, Robert Jones, with him.

Robert Jones, who is now aged 74 and attended Tuesday’s sentencing hearing, described his relationship with his son as “up and down”.

He would ask his son to buy his groceries, sometimes giving him his bank card under “strict instruction” to only use it to purchase the shopping he requested.

But in May 2024, Robert Jones discovered up to £7,360 had been withdrawn from his account via ATMs which he was unaware of - nobody else besides his son had access to his card.

At the end of 2023, Peter Jones offered to buy motorbike parts for his father; to do so, he encouraged him to set up a credit card with Santander, saying it was “safer to use a credit card than a debit card”.

The credit card was set up, and though Peter Jones told his father he’d used it to buy the motorbike parts, they did not arrive.

Peter Jones told his father this was because the parts were being delivered from America, and that there was “nothing for him to worry about”.

But by March 2024, Robert Jones noticed his account balance falling “rapidly,” and asked his son to shut it down.

In May 2024, Robert Jones went to his bank to discover his account had £4,569.84 in it, having been regularly transferring money to Peter Jones’ account.

Peter Jones would also go to a Post Office branch at least once a week, and sometimes three times a day, to withdraw between £50 and £60 from his father’s account.

When Robert Jones’ niece confronted Peter Jones about what he had done, he accepted responsibility and said he was “disgusted with himself”.

She contacted police, who arrested Peter Jones, and found Santander bank statements in his father’s name in his bedroom.

Peter Jones was also subject to two suspended prison sentences at the time.

In total, he withdrew £7,360 in cash from his father’s account, transferred £9,201.70 from it to his own, and spent £4,569.84 with the credit card in his dad’s name, amounting to a total of £21,131.54.

Representing Peter Jones, who had 18 previous convictions for 35 offences, Richard Edwards said he feels “genuine remorse” for his actions.

Mr Edwards added that Peter Jones, who served in the Army, feels “deep-rooted shame and embarrassment, given the support he’s always received from his father”.

The death of Peter Jones’ long-term partner in 2022 led to an “emotional collapse,” Mr Edwards said, and caused him to relapse into “significant” heroin and crack cocaine use, and to experience “traumatic” nightmares.

But Mr Edwards said Peter Jones is now engaging with substance misuse services, and is making “good progress in all areas of his life”.

Sentencing, Judge Nicola Jones described a letter, written by Robert Jones to the court, as “so dignified, kind and forgiving”.

Judge Jones told Peter Jones: “Your father has been extremely supportive of you throughout your adult life. I have no doubt that you’ve brought trouble to his door.

“There was an abuse of trust over a sustained period, with continued lies.

“The reason I’m suspending your sentence is because, in my judgment, you are capable of rehabilitation. You are addressing the root problems of your offending.

“This is the best opportunity you have had at breaking that cycle of chaos in your life, which you eventually brought to your father’s door by stealing money from him. Do not let me down.”

Peter Jones will complete 20 days’ rehabilitation activity and a mental health treatment requirement.

Judge Jones thanked the defendant’s “dignified” family for their “kindness”.