Possession of Criminal Property - No Prison

Case study summary

Our client pleaded guilty to accepting £1000 as a payment for her brother who slashed another inmate's face. The seriousness of the offence meant that she risked being sent to prison. Our thorough preparation of the case avoided this outcome.

Case study

Our client was a 26-year-old single mother. In April 2020 she was accused of receiving a bank transfer of £1000 on behalf of her brother who is in prison. The money was allegedly a payment for him to slash another inmate's face with a knife.

We were recommended to our client by another solicitors firm, so she contacted us and asked us to represent her. During our first conference, she admitted the allegations and showed remorse for her actions. She explained that her brother contacted her from prison and asked her to accept the money on his behalf. She did not know what it was for exactly but admitted that she had an idea of what might happen. Her brother told her that she would be able to keep some of the money for herself. At the time, our client was in an abusive relationship and suffering from bipolar disorder. She was desperate for money which would allow her and her young son to flee from her abuser.

Due to the seriousness of the offence, our client was at risk of receiving a prison sentence. However, we explained our client's position to the court at the time of her offending and obtained evidence to support this. Since the offence, she had managed to begin a new life away from her abusive partner and obtained a job within the NHS. We collected character references to support this and highlighted that our client had never been in trouble with the police before. The offending was a clear act of desperation.

The judge accepted our argument and our client received a suspended sentence. She was relieved that she will now be able to continue with a fresh start for her and her son.