IFAJul 17 2018

Nursing home boss who lied about financial adviser jailed

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Nursing home boss who lied about financial adviser jailed

A nursing home boss, who preyed on vulnerable elderly people and lied about a financial adviser in order to get them sacked, has been jailed.

David Barton, formerly known as Ramamurthie Dasaratha, was jailed for 21 years after the biggest fraud investigation ever undertaken by Merseyside Police.

The 63-year-old of Oxford Road, Birkdale, committed fraud worth millions of pounds at Barton Park Nursing Home in Southport.

He was also disqualified from being a director for a maximum of 15 years.

Rosemary Booth, 69 years, of Hesketh Drive, Southport – who acted as general manager of Barton park Nursing Home - was also jailed, for six years, for her part in the conspiracy to defraud.

The pair were convicted on 11 May following a trial that lasted 12 months, the longest in the history of Merseyside Police and Liverpool Crown Court, and sentenced on Friday (13 July).

Barton was found guilty of defrauding residents of his nursing home over a 16-year period, since 1998.

He was remanded into custody ahead of sentencing, and Booth was released on bail after being convicted for her part in the conspiracy.

The offences came to light in February 2014 when David Barton attempted to sue the family of one of his victims for non-payment of money which he falsely claimed he was owed.

Concerns were raised by solicitors representing the estate of Katie Willey, who had passed away, and her husband Gordon Willey.

They believed a fraudulent £8m civil action had been brought by Barton against the couple to settle an alleged contract which, he claimed, Ms Willey had verbally agreed to before her death.

Barton was arrested on 13 June 2014 when documents and computers were seized.

As Barton’s activities and finances were probed, the investigation identified a total of six victims who had been defrauded of millions of pounds.

Most were women who had recently lost their husbands, were wealthy and had no dependants.

No contracts have ever been identified and Barton claimed they had made verbal agreements to gift him money, leave it in their wills or made an agreement to provide lifelong care in exchange for all their wealth.

The investigation established that Barton had been identifying wealthy elderly people and grooming them, isolating them from their family and taking control of their assets and finances until he became their executor and residual beneficiary of their wills.

Large payments were then taken from the victims’ accounts, which was then spent on properties and vehicles by Barton.

After the arrests, Barton sold four Ferraris for more than £1m, and two Rolls Royce vehicles for £250,000 before a financial restraint was granted to prevent the selling of 20 properties and four more vehicles with an estimated total value of £6m to £8m.

Detective Inspector Jon Smith, who led the investigation, said: "We welcome the fact that David Barton and Rosemary Booth are now behind bars.

"For 16 years, David Barton preyed upon wealthy elderly people in Southport, bleeding them of their hard-earned savings and enjoying a lavish lifestyle of fast cars, holidays and multiple properties as a result.

"Barton ruthlessly groomed his victims, gaining their trust and confidence to such an extent that when we spoke to his victims, some found it very difficult to accept that they were victims.

"But our team of detectives were determined to unravel the truth – that he had heartlessly exploited vulnerable people when they most needed someone to care for them.

"These were people who had worked hard all their lives, only for David Barton to step in, pretend to have their best interests at heart – then take thousands and thousands of pounds of their money.

"His offending came to light because his greed led him to sue a family who realised an £8m civil claim against them was fraudulent.

"I want to thank that family, who have undoubtedly spared other families from suffering the same fate by coming forward with their concerns.

"Our priority was always to deliver justice for the victims, and to prevent more elderly people from being defrauded by Barton. It has been a long and complex investigation, but being here for today’s result has made those efforts feel worthwhile."

emma.hughes@ft.com