Scouts treasurer who stole £40,000 from kids groups may have to give up pension to pay back ill-gotten gains
A Scouts treasurer who defrauded a group out of £40,000 may have to give up his pension to pay back some of his ill-gotten gains.
Father-of-two Gavin Real, who helped himself to money from the Shropshire Scouts in the Severn and Teme District and Coalbrookdale Scouts, was handed a suspended jail sentence last September after pleading guilty to charges of theft and fraud by abuse of position.
However, the 42-year-old was due back at Shrewsbury Crown Court, sitting at Telford Justice Centre, for a proceeds of crime hearing today (Monday, July 14), to see if some of the money he stole could be recouped.
Real was not in attendance for the hearing, but the court was told discussions are ongoing for the matter to be resolved.
Robert Edwards, representing Real, said the benefit figure that could be agreed may be £30,500. The court previously heard that Real paid some of the money back by maxing out credit cards.
He also said investigations into Real’s finances were still taking place to see if his pension, worth around £5,000, could be used to contribute to the repayment.
