A financial director and secretary of a top estate

A financial director and secretary of a top estate agents milked
thousands from their firm to pay for their ‘lavish’ lifestyles, a jury
were told on Thursday.

Keith Foster, 43, and Susan Datson, 33, allegedly stole some
pnds stlg 200,000 from the Romford-based company Hilbery Chaplin.

Some of the cash went on expensive foreign holidays, hotels,
restaurants, and a vintage car, jurors at Snaresbrook Crown Court
were told.

Foster, of Hope Cottages, Hall Lane, South Ockenden, Essex,
denies conspiracy to defraud Hilbery Chaplin, of Eastern Road,
Romford, and other charges of theft, forgery, false accounting,
and obtaining property by deception.

Divorcee Datson, of Mygrove Road, Rainham, Essex, also denies
conspiracy to defraud and a further charge of theft of a car.

The jury were told that Hilbery Chaplin was an established
firm of chartered surveyors and estate agents headed by
the senior partner Sir Malcolm Hilbery Chaplin.

The business has other offices mainly throughout Essex and is
linked to a number of subsidiary companies, said Mr Michael Lawson,
QC, prosecuting.

In 1982 Foster applied successfully for the pnds stlg 13,500 post
as company secretary in the partnership.

Counsel said that he was given a company car, health care cover
and ‘most attractively’ a house for him, with his wife and two
children.

The jury were told how Foster’s position became ‘very important’
as he took charge of the financial administration of Hilbery Chaplin.

‘He enjoyed total trust of the partners.

Some of those partners
had to sign cheques for various expenditure and accepted his
explanation of the need for these cheques,’ continued counsel.

Mr Lawson said that between 1986 and 1990 Foster ‘was able to
take from the company something in the region of pnds stlg 200,000.

‘In part of that the Crown say that Datson was also involved.

‘
The court heard how in 1984 Datson started as an accounts clerk
for the partnership and by 1989 had risen to the position of Sir
Malcolm’s personal assistant.

Mr Lawson described Foster and Datson as having a ‘close working
and social relationship’ and in 1986 she accepted from Foster an
‘additional Access card.

‘
And she was later granted an American Express card after
describing Foster as her fiance in the application form, the jury were
told.

‘These cards were used for their joint benefit.

‘It was Foster’s pre-eminent position in the partnership which
allowed him to steal or otherwise extract substantial sums,’ said
counsel.

Datson was allegedly provided with a company car that she
was not entitled to under the terms of her employment.

One of a ‘number of ways’ through which Foster allegedly siphoned
off funds was by paying cheques from Hilbery Chaplin into the Access
account under Datson’s name.

The jury were shown a long list of Access card transactions
relating to both Foster and Datson including holidays in America,
Australia, Spain and Italy with weekend stays in Amsterdam and Paris.

‘The card was used extensively for hotels, restaurants, male and
female clothing, for shoes and for groceries.

‘There were endless visits to off-licences and restaurants.

‘It appears Datson’s petrol was paid for on that account.

‘There was an agreement between Foster and Datson where they
would use forged cheques to pay the Access account from which they
would lavishly spend,’ said counsel.

The court heard how after his arrest in August, 1990, Foster
initially said it was all ‘legitimate business expenditure’ on the
Access account.

‘There was little justification that this was legitimate business
expenditure,’ added Mr Lawson.

The court heard that such expenditure was normally dealt with
through a ‘petty cash system.

‘
The prosecution claim that Foster ‘disguised the destination’ of
cheques by filling in false details of the payee on the cheque-stubs.

Foster failed to provide invoices or ‘documentary proof’ to
justify his expenditure, the jury were told.

It is alleged that Foster also dishonestly claimed for cash from
the firm’s petty cash system.

Mr Lawson explained that another area of the alleged fraud involved
Foster’s manipulation of Hilbery Chaplin’s computer salary payment
system for which he was solely responsible.

‘The Crown say what he did was to pay himself extra amounts by
filling in a form instructing the computer to pay him extra,’ said
counsel.

Another category involved Foster claiming back for himself
sizeable discounts offered by companies including Laidlaw’s who
provided Hilbery Chaplin with cars, it was alleged.

Foster allegedly ‘siphoned off’ some of the discount payments
into a ‘special account’ which senior partners knew nothing about.

Mr Lawson said that some of the money allowed Foster to
‘substantially upgrade’ his company car and pay towards a ‘rather nice
Austin Seven vintage touring car.

‘
‘There were moneys due to Hilbery Chaplin that were never seen
and credited to them,’ added counsel.

Just before Foster’s annual family holiday to their time share
home in Marbella, in July 1990 – the tickets for himself, wife, and
two children were allegedly paid for using the Access card – Sir Malcolm
discovered two photocopies of cheques paid from his company to Access.

Sir Malcolm was unaware whose account they related to but he
asked Foster to find the relevant invoices.

‘Foster did not provide any such documentation before he went on
holiday,’ said Mr Lawson.

The court heard how before going to Spain Foster started to bag-
up paperwork for shredding, but his secretary stored it in the
cupboard.

‘It is just as well they were not shredded because a number of
the documents related to the salary pay structure.

‘Unravelling of what went on might have been a great deal more
difficult if it had not been for the finding of these documents,’ said
Mr Lawson.

While Foster was away further inquiries were made and on August 8
he was arrested.

And two days later Datson was also arrested.

The trial continues on Wednesday and is expected to last at least
four weeks.

ENDS