Oxfordshire Parish Clerk Raided £162,000 from Accounts

An Oxfordshire woman has been convicted of fleecing two parish councils of almost £162,000 over a 12-year period.

Joanne Wills, 47, of Crowell Hill, Chinnor, admitted four charges of fraud by false representation when she appeared at Oxford Magistrates' Court on Tuesday, 10th May 2022.

Fraud by false representation is an offence under section 2 of the Fraud Act 2006. It has a maximum penalty of 26 weeks' custody (52 weeks' custody for offences committed from 2nd May 2022) and/or an unlimited fine on summary conviction; 10 years' custody and/or an unlimited fine on conviction on indictment.

Magistrates heard that Wills had been the clerk of Towersey Parish Council between 2009 and 2021. She had also been the clerk of Chinnor Parish Council between December 2019 and January 2021.

In addition to syphoning £161,864 from the councils, she also transferred more than £20,600 from Chinnor to Towersey in an attempt to cover up a hugh shortfall in the latter's finances.

Alastair Yapp, prosecuting, described how Wills created a number of fraudulent invoices bearing her own bank details. Council bosses also discovered a number of blank template invoices bearing the names of legitimate companies.

Wills' deception started to unravel when eagle-eyed Towersey councillors noticed a discrepancy between minutes sent to members and those posted on the council's website.

Scott Primmer, mitigating, asked for the case to be adjourned for a pre-sentence report before sentencing at the Crown Court.

He also asked that the sentencing hearing be delayed slightly, because Wills' son is undertaking his GCSE exams until the end of June.

Anne Pappenheim, Presiding Justice, said: "From what we've heard today this case is clearly way beyond our sentencing powers and so it is going to be sent to the Crown Court for sentence.

"We've been asked to order a pre-sentence report to give the Judge more information about you to guide his sentence and we are going to do that.

"So, you are committed to the Crown Court sitting at Oxford for sentence.

"These offences are so serious you need greater punishment than we can give."

Wills was granted unconditional bail until her sentencing at Oxford Crown Court on 30th June 2022.

Update (30/6/22): Wills has just been sentenced. Read about the outcome.