A Roseau man, Prisma Joseph, has been ordered by Justice Wynante Adrien-Roberts of the Dominica High Court to pay back the sum of $12,000 to a breast cancer patient, Rosa Darroux, whom he scammed in the fraudulent purchase of a car.
The facts of the case is that Darroux, who was undergoing breast cancer treatments at the time, contracted Joseph to order a Honda HRV on her behalf in May 2016. Joseph collected the sum of $6,000 for the purchase of the car, and later collected another $1,800 to get the car cleared from the port, and yet another $3,000 for supposed increment in port charges.
However, it turned out that Joseph did not order any car for Darroux and there was no car being cleared at the ports for her. The scammer was arrested around 2018 and he spent two years at the Dominica State Prison where he was remanded pending the repayment of the money. On his arraignment in court on October 5, 2020, the accused pleaded guilty to the offence and agreed that he would repay the entire money to the petitioner.
Justice Adrien-Roberts ordered that Joseph must repay in excess of $12,000 to Darroux and must be incarcerated for 2 years and 6 months. The maximum sentence for fraud in Dominica is 10 years.
Joseph’s lawyer, Peter Alleyne, pleaded with the court that his client readily pleaded guilty to the charge and that he is willing to repay the main sum as well as any accruable interest to Darroux. He explained that Joseph had been in prison custody for two years and that he is now reformed and very sorry for his deeds.
Justice Adrien-Roberts ruled that the accused was meticulous in planning the fraudulent act, and that the complainant must have experienced emotional distress given that she was undergoing breast cancer treatments, and gave the agreed amount to Joseph out of her savings and a loan.
But given that Joseph was cooperative with the police throughout the investigations and is willing to repay his debts – Adrien-Roberts removed three months; and with the fact that he has spent two years in prison, another one year and nine months were removed from the sentencing. This means that Joseph has served his time and will no longer remain incarcerated.
According to the judge, Joseph must first pay $5,000 by January 30, 2021 and the balance debt before March 30, 2021. Failure to make the first payment by the end of January will return the accused to prison for six months, and he must repay the entire loan following his release from prison after the six months.
This article is copyright © 2020 DOM767
