A MAN bought a blank cheque for £100 in order to try and clear debts of more than £2,000, a court has heard.
Neal Wynne, of Chapel Street, Wrexham, appeared before Wrexham Magistrates Court yesterday where he pleaded guilty to a charge of fraud by false representation.
Justin Espie, prosecuting, told the court that on August 5, the victim noticed three blank cheques were missing from a chequebook he usually keeps in his glovebox.
He was contacted by his bank the following day which said someone had tried to cash one of the cheques, but had been unsuccessful due to there being insufficient funds to cover it in his account.
Elzbeth Kenny, defending, said Wynne bought the cheque from an acquaintance for £100.
She told the court Wynne, 48, had been unemployed for most of his life due to schizophrenia.
He got into debt with local drug dealers after self medicating with amphetamine to treat his symptoms. At the time of the offence he was more than £2,000 into his overdraft.
She said: “The offence was committed as a result of being overdrawn. A man came along
and said ‘would you like to buy this off me for £100?’ and he saw it as an opportunity to clear his debts.”
He took the cheque into the Royal Bank of Scotland in Wrexham where he signed it to credit his own account with £2,062.
But alarm bells rang for staff at the branch when there wasn’t enough in the victim’s account and they contacted the police.
When arrested Wynne made a full and frank admission.
Wynne was remanded on unconditional bail and the case was adjourned until Friday for a pre-sentence report.