Shropshire man who ran up £2,853 debt on his mother’s credit card avoids jail

Andrew Owen, from Gobowen, took the M&S card from the family’s home, in Perry Road, and used it to go shopping and buy petrol over a two-month period.

The 39-year-old, who was on licence, was rumbled when his mother received her bill totalling £2,853, and. She took him to task over it and reported him to the police.

Owen, who has had long-standing drug issues from the age of 17, was temporarily returned to prison following the latest arrest.

Mr Trevor Meegan, prosecuting, said: “The victim kept her credit card hidden in her bedroom. She kept it for emergencies. She didn’t give her son the identity number.

"The defendant took the card and made a number of transactions between July and August by cash withdrawals, shopping at stores in the Oswestry area, including £250 at the Dog & Bone mobile phone shop.

“The mother confronted her son about it. He did admit it to her, but when he was interviewed by the police he denied fraud and said his mother had given him permission and had given him the pin number.”

Having previously denying an offence of fraud by false representation between June 30 and September 1, 2017, Owen changed his plea to guilty ahead of his trial in December.

The painter and decorator has previous convictions dating to the 1990s, including for drug offences and burglary.

Mr Jasvir Mann, mitigating, said: “This is not the first time that he has stolen from his parents. He should have pleaded guilty earlier. He has since spent 23 days in custody before he was bailed in October and has been living in a Birmingham hostel – the Scala House drug rehabilitation service. He tells me he is now sober and clean.”

Owen was sentenced to 30 weeks jail suspended for 18 months at Shrewsbury Crown Court. He must attend drug rehabilitation for nine months, carry out 100 hours unpaid work in the community and complete a 20-day activity programme.

Judge Peter Barrie told him: “I do think this is was a serious offence. This was sustained offending over a two-month period and different in character than just a one-off use of a card in an emergency. If you had been convicted by a jury the shortest sentence would have been 40 weeks imprisonment.”