By Philip Dewey
Tabitha Richardson of Newport sent customers threatening messages when they received their refunds. She also threatened that she would “come find them”.
A woman who operated illegally as a “loan shark” charged people up to 40% interest and threatened to come look for them. One couple was “trapped” in debt and had to repay more money than they earned every month.
Officers from the Wales Illegal Money Lending Unit visited Tabitha Richardson (83), of Newport on 30 August last year, after they received information regarding her illegal activity. Her previous licence, which permitted her to legally lend money, had expired and she was able to carry out these practices without a license.
At a sentencing at Cardiff Crown Court, Richardson claimed that a safe had been found in the garage of her home on Nash Road. The safe was initially thought to be a collection of property deeds, and Richardson claimed she’d lost the key. However, a locksmith had to open it to reveal that the safe contained PS6,550 worth of cash.
Seized were also bankbooks, lending books and files. Alex Greenwood reviewed the cases of several victims of Richardson who borrowed money. She had lent out a total amount of PS126,000 without a license.
Richardson sent a couple text threats when they didn’t make their repayments. The couple was receiving benefits, and unable to go to work because of their medical conditions. However, their repayments were so high that they paid more than the monthly income.
Richardson sent the victim a text when they failed to pay. “You know that I will find you, just ring me” and “You must speak with me to let me know where you are before I go looking for you”. Richardson demanded that the male victim repay interest of around PS12400. Richardson sent threatening texts to the female victim, telling her: “I’m not going to look for you. But your leaving me no other option”. We have been friends for many years. Let’s stay together. She had borrowed around PS46300, and repaid PS18600 plus interest.
The defendant visited the home of a man in Pillgwenlly every week to collect the repayments. Richardson, he believed, was working for a company registered. He took out 2 to 3 loans per year. The defendant had no license and he was still charged 40% interest on a PS1,850 loan.
Richardson’s daughter took loans from him as early as 1990, with interest rates of 40 percent. Both the woman’s brother-in law and husband took out loans from Richardson. Richardson found a bag in her home that had the victim’s signature on it. The bag contained PS150, and was posted through Richardson’s letterbox. The victim, who was not licensed by the court at the time of the crime, paid PS3,200 as interest on a total loan amounting to PS8,500.
Richardson began to lend money to another victim in order for him keep up his mortgage payments. The defendant told him he worked for “Harity”, but the investigation revealed that no company of this name existed. He said that another victim had paid PS600 for a PS2,000 loan, while another victim had paid PS240 for a PS600 loan.
Richardson, who was under caution when she spoke to the police in November of last year, said that although she has been legally working as a moneylender since the 1970s, it is illegal for her to lend money since 2016. She said that people came to her and asked for money, with repayments in cash.
Later, she pleaded to guilty of engaging in an activity that required a licence while not being a licensed person. She also pleaded guilt for carrying on a regulated activities when not authorized/exempt and money laundering. She had not been convicted before, the court found out.
Andrew Kendal, in mitigation, said that his client had “undoubtedly made money” through the lending she did but was primarily motivated by “helping” those to whom she was lending. Barrister Kendal said that the barrister’s client did not lend out of greed or malicious intent for her clients, but rather to “help” them.
At the sentencing hearing, Benjamin Blakemore informed Richardson that she avoided an immediate prison sentence by “a whisker”. She had “run roughshod over” regulations and legislation designed to protect borrowers. He described her messages as “threatening and intimidating to some degree”.
Judge added, “Your interest rates kept them “in a cycle of debt”, and you exploited them for profit. Your probation officer said that you did people a favor by helping them and not to profit yourself. If you were financially secure, it was not necessary to charge the rate of interest that you did to those who would struggle to pay their debts. “I reject that this was motivated by greed. In my opinion, it was.”
Richardson received a sentence of 24 months in prison, with two years suspended. Richardson was told that if she commits another crime within two years of the suspension period, she will be sentenced to prison.
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