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London man accused of stealing £1.5m from elderly mother he visited in Israel
A 62-year-old man is on trial in London after being accused of stealing over a million pounds from his elderly mother
September 1, 2022 16:28
A 62-year-old man is on trial in London after being accused of stealing over a million pounds from his elderly mother
September 1, 2022 16:28A 62-year-old man is on trial in London after being accused of stealing over a million pounds from his elderly mother.
Southwark Crown Court heard that Jonathan Feld of Chatsworth Road, Kilburn, is accused of stealing £1.5 million from his 89-year-old mother when visiting her in Israel.
Mr Feld denies the two charges of theft between October 2014 and September 2018 and claims his mother Hannah gave him the money as a gift.
He is accused of withdrawing money from his mother’s account via ATMs in Israel, and then moving 1.3 million of it into a joint Julius Baer Swiss bank account.
A letter dated 25 September 2017, presented to the court by forensic accountant Claire Berrington, requests the removal of the joint account's balance into one in Jonathan Feld’s name only.
Mr Feld is also accused of using his mother’s credit cards on shopping sprees in London, transferring stocks and shares, and withdrawing cash from her accounts via ATMs in the UK.
The court has heard that Mrs Feld, who retired to Tel Aviv in 1988, was undergoing “significant cognitive decline” when Mr Feld allegedly targeted her funds.
The trial comes after Mr Feld’s sister, Louise Radley, pursued a private prosecution against her sibling.
James Fletcher, the barrister defending Mr Feld, asked Berrington in court if there was “nothing to suggest that you have seen any documents where the signatures were not genuine?’”
Ms Berrington confirmed she had not.
The court heard that Mr Feld and his mother were both authorised to order transactions and that there were no problems with the actions taken on the Swiss account.
Ms Berrington said cash withdrawals from Mrs Feld’s account “‘increased substantially” when Mr Feld was in Israel, with 64.8 per cent of her total cash withdrawals across 2016 taking place when her son was visiting.
“When he goes to Israel there are more cash withdrawals from Hannah Feld’s bank account. At that time more money is withdrawn,” Ms Berrington said.
“That’s not very surprising. I don’t know whether he was visiting his mother. All I know is more money comes out of her account."
Adam Gersch, prosecuting, said: “The prosecution suggests that the complex web of finances means the transactions were not gifts.
“There is clear evidence that Hannah Feld suffered significant cognitive decline to such an extent that she required professional help and support.
“The manner in which the money was transferred to the defendant was out of character and inherently suspicious because any significant gifts had previously been given by the solicitors and this was a case where the money transferred to her son was done without anyone else’s knowledge," he continued, highlighting that: “Over £1 million was transferred with a number of key people being kept in the dark.”
The trial will continue at Southwark Crown Court.