Defence solicitor says accused insist they were begging
Four men and a woman have appeared in court accused of carrying out bogus charity collections in which they allegedly claimed to be deaf-mute.
He explained that over the last fortnight there have been at least 28 alleged incidents all over the country including Armagh, Lurgan, Craigavon, Banbridge, Newry, Downpatrick, Newcastle, Carryduff, Bangor, Newtownabbey, Lisburn, Ballymena, Cookstown and Omagh. The officer said the accused made the case they were begging in shops but not collecting for any charity. However a number of witnesses have provided statements setting out how the accused claimed they were “collecting for the deaf and handicapped, and behaving in a way which suggested they were deaf-mute”.
CCTV footage has been recovered from numerous locations some of which show customers in shops handing money over to the group. The officer also pointed to a risk of reoffending and potential interference with witnesses as some people who handed over cash also completed forms with their names and addresses and these have not yet been recovered.
District Judge Eamonn King remarked: “There seems to be an organised element of criminality to obtain money under false pretences by claiming to be collecting for charity while making out they are deaf-mute to encourage people to donate.”
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