Woman Pleads Guilty: $20,000 Fraud
57-year-old Helene Louise Sutcliffe returned to Plea Court this morning [Dec.2] and pleaded guilty to 15 charges involving fraud, having stolen from her own mother.
The five incidents of fraud were $5,000, $8,000, $3,000, $3,528.69 and $1,500 –- all in 2011. She faced ten more charges; five of making or creating a false letter of authorization, and five more of using that false letter to defraud.
Unrepresented at her initial hearing, at today’s hearing she remained unrepresented but had changed her plea.
Senior Magistrate Archie Warner accepted her guilty plea and enquired why she appeared in the orange suit of a person held in remand.
The DPP Prosecutor said that no one had stood $15,000 Surety for her or had offered to sign her $15,000 bail, so she had been held in custody since 4th November 2011.
Ms Sutcliffe told the Magistrate that she was an outpatient at MAWI, had been living at Gulfstream House by arrangement with the Bermuda Housing Corporation, and was receiving financial assistance from Government.
She also told the Magistrate that she was planning to start work and, once working, intended to make good the money that she had taken.
Considering all the circumstances, the Senior Magistrate said that he would take the unusual step of reducing her bail to $2,000 and also remove the requirement for a Surety which meant that Ms Sutcliffe would be able to sign her own bail form.
Understanding what this meant, Ms Sutcliffe was clearly a lot happier and she showed it by asking the Magistrate if that meant that she could ‘”go now?”
Her request drew audible snickers from the public gallery and the Magistrate’s response was that she would be freed today.
He told her that she must return on 26th January 2012 for sentencing but that she must now work with Court Services in order that they could complete a Social Inquiry Report and a Psychiatric report before her 26th January return date.
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Can’t choose your family…unfortunately
BUT you can choose to dis-own them
Insant gratification ; She couldn’t wait for her inheritance .
Run the PLP out of town and let the OBA takeover. Tourist would come here then.
@ Cancer: you represent a growing number of people who are using this forum to express foolish sentiment. I now dread reading the comments on bernews due to the amount of foolhearted comments that appear daily.
Your comments have no relevance to the featured story… SMDH
The featured story is sad for a myriad of reasons. The lady who appeared in Court is mentally ill (on her on admission) and her crime though wrong, could be mitigated by her mental illness. There should be a mental health Court to deal with convicted persons with mental illnesses. I hope that the reports that the Court ordered assist in getting the Convicted woman the help that she needs.
Sad Situation I agree with your last paragraph in that we have to deal with this type of case with more than the law book in hand.
In regard to the first paragraph and that of Cancer, I guess we cannot believe how anyone could give this sort of reply in such a case…but I do believe that alot of replies are submitted to ‘start up’ conversation on other matters.
Sad situation you are completely correct, however cancer has a point despite its irrelevence to the story at hand. PLP has in fact ruined out little island and they need to go.
Clearly this woman has problems but isn’t this a classic case of elder abuse? How vulnerable is her mother and what steps are being taken to protect the mother now her daughter has had her bail reduced and is free to go? What is the National Office for Seniors doing about this? Continued slaps on the wrist for elder abuse just perpetrate the view that it’s OK to steal from old people.
The National Office for Seniors & Age Concern is a farce! The people that work there are so busy trying to get into your business instead of dealing with the situation as it is being reported. I believe my mother suffered more than she had to because they did nothing to assist us.
I hope this lady can get some help and I really hipe there is someone else looking out for her mother.