A fraudster who lied to a Piperdam couple about having hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of stocks swindled them out of £25,000 in a fake shares scam.
Former salesman Sebastian Ward presented himself as “harmless” to the Angus couple he befriended in the leisure centre’s bar.
Determined liar Ward produced a phoney certificate which purported to show he had 1,000,000 shares in janitorial firm Mitie.
He gave his victims – a couple identified as the Peebles – the impression he was a successful trader with access to discount prices.
In fact, his portfolio had not yet reached its record high of £13.
Ward pled guilty to defrauding the couple.
Con contact made
43-year-old father Ward, formerly of Broughty Ferry but now of Greyfriars Hostel in Perth, appeared at Forfar Sheriff Court to be sentenced for his con.
Prosecutor Alan Bell said: “The complainers are ex-neighbours of the accused.
“Both the witnesses would regularly attend in at the nearby leisure club, Piperdam, and saw the accused, who became a regular in the bar area.
“The accused would occasionally join the witnesses.
“This was not an issue as the accused appeared harmless to the witnesses but would regularly state things that would embellish aspects of his life and lifestyle.”
On a date in 2019, Mr Peebles and Ward were together at the bar.
The prosecutor said: “The accused informed Mr Peebles that he had shares in Mitie and he informed that he could obtain shares at a significantly discounted price.
“The accused offered to purchase shares on his behalf, (adding) he would need to be quick to take advantage as it was a sensitive deal.
“The witness agreed to purchase an initial amount of £10,000.
“On November 11, 2019, Mrs Peebles sent £10,000 to the accused’s account… from their joint bank account.”
Shonky certificate
Mr Bell said Ward would “persistently encourage” Mr Peebles to invest more in the share scheme and ten days after the initial investment, a further £15,000 was sent.
“A number of months passed without any update from the accused.
“Mr Peebles requested proof of these shares.
“The accused provided them with a crude copy of a share certificate, which showed several thousand Mitie shares purchased in the name of the accused.
“There is no date of purchase and the certificate appeared forged, with no official stamp or seal.
“The certificate was also provided from Hargreaves Lansdowne, a stock-broking firm which showed the accused to be the holder of about a million shares.
“Mrs Peebles contacted Hargreaves Lansdowne to discuss the matter, sending them copies of the share certificate… only to be told they could not discuss the matter as it was not her name on the certificate.
“However the matter had been passed to their internal fraud department for investigation.”
Cash chase
Mrs Peebles contacted Ward to demand he sell the shares as the stock market crashed during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Mr Bell said: “The accused informed he would; however he never returned the money despite several demands.
“Mr Peebles contacted the accused and informed him that he had been defrauded and threatened to report him to the police.
“The accused paid about £1,200 in dribs and drabs using cash in person. However, these payments did cease.
“As a result, the complainers contacted a law firm in 2021 and a civil case was referred.
“The accused failed to appear or have representation. The case was found in favour of the complainers.
“The accused was ordered to pay back the entire sum plus legal fees and damages.”
Ward paid around £10,000 in sums between £100 and £1,700 per month but stopped, saying he had lost his job.
Mr Bell said the complainers are still owed about £15,000 plus legal fees.
“Efforts were made for seizure of property items through the bailiff service; however it transpired the accused had no form of seizable assets in his name.”
When police contacted the fraud section at Hargreaves Lansdowne, a statement was provided which showed Ward had, since 2000, had a maximum balance of £13.37.
Sentencing deferred again
On Thursday, solicitor Kyra Strachan said: “He’s not working at the moment but he has applied for jobs. He went to Murray Royal for a detox.
“He previously worked in sales. He travelled to Manchester and places like that.”
From the dock, Ward said: “When I was in the newspapers, I lost my job because of that – I turned to alcohol.”
Sheriff Derek Reekie slammed the account Ward had given to social workers to inform sentencing.
He said: “The report raised umpteen discrepancies.
“It makes for quite unhappy reading. There’s reference to inconsistent information.
“I’m not at all impressed. There’s repeated mention of completely different people. There’s conflicting information about whether he’s working.”
The sheriff further deferred sentencing until May.
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