Shropshire scout treasurer stole and defrauded group of £40k which will take decades to recoup
The district treasurer of a Shropshire Scouts troop has been spared jail after admitting stealing and defrauding the organisation out of more than £40,000 while he was their treasurer.
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Gavin Real admitted taking a £10,000 grant given to the scouts from the government, which he spent on his family's 'day to day' spending, as well as defrauding the organisation out of £30,500 between 2019 and 2022.
The 42-year-old of Oxford Road, Ipswich, Suffolk had been living in Shropshire at the time of the offences and was volunteering for the county's scout movement, Shrewsbury Crown Court heard on Wednesday.
Simon Parry prosecuting said Real, a father of two, had been treasurer for Shropshire Scouts in the Severn and Teme District between 2019 and 2022 and later became local treasurer of the Coalbrookdale Scouts Group.
He told the court that in October 2022 the District Commissioner for Shropshire Scouts, Darren Owen, quizzed Real about the Severn and Teme District's bank account after there was no funds in it despite a cheque having just been paid in.
“He asked the defendant about it and he said he was helping Coalbrookdale Scouts Group with a cash flow issue as their money was tied up in a payment card system, similar to Paypal that was being resolved," he said.
Following closer scrutiny of the bank accounts controlled by Real, Mr Parry said the Mr Owen visited the treasurer's home on November 20, 2022.
