Subscribe to trusted local news
In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever. By subscribing, you can help us get the story right.
- Subscription costs less than £1 a week with an annual plan.
Already a subscriber? Log in here.
28
Apr 2023
Couple deny defrauding Harrogate estate agents with £24m wealth claim
A couple have denied a string of fraud offences after it was alleged they dishonestly claimed to have wealth of £24 million to gain a tenancy on a house in the Harrogate district
John and Jacqueline Carnell appeared via video link from their home in Loule, Portugal, to face the charges at Harrogate Magistrates Court yesterday.
The offences are alleged to have taken place between July 2014 and December 2018.
Mr Carnell, 70, denied 10 charges, including dishonestly making a false representation to Hopkinsons Estate Agents that he had personal funds of £24,172,421 to gain a 12-month tenancy agreement to rent a property named in court as Highfield House.
He also denied continuing to make false representations about his wealth, including being the beneficiary of a trust fund, to maintain renting the property.
Mr Carnell also faced a charge of being in possession of letters purporting to be from Barclays Wealth suggesting an account balance of between £24 million and £26 million "for use in the course of or in connection with a fraud".
Meanwhile, the 70-year-old pleaded not guilty to changing names on cheques to his wife's and presenting two cheques to Hopkinsons representing that there was sufficient funds to pay his tenancy, when there was not.
Mr Carnell also faced two charges of stealing cash transfers which were made for a specific purpose.
One count was in relation to £40,810 being made for the purchase of vehicles and another for £102,910 which was made for the payment of disbursements for a planning application at Archer Hill.
Read more:
He was also charged with two counts of obtaining credit without informing that he was an undischarged bankrupt.
The 70-year-old denied all charges.
Meanwhile, Ms Carnell, 73, pleaded not guilty to changing the name on a signed cheque to her own to induce Barclays Bank to accept it as genuine.
She also denied a charge of presenting two cheques to Hopkinsons Estate Agents representing that there was sufficient funds to pay the tenancy at Highfield House, when there was not.
Antony Farrell, prosecuting, requested that the case be heard at crown court due to the “long and complex” nature of the charges and the values involved.
The magistrates ordered both defendants to appear before York Crown Court on May 30, 2023.
0