Jail for callous sisters in Penrith haulage firm fraud

Joanne Palmer, 40, and Stephanie Palmer, 38, repeatedly threatened their distsraught victim as they sought too financially “bleed dry” both her and her company, Carlisle Crown Court heard.

They also conned a firm in Yorkshire.

The Palmer sisters and two women who helped them were brought to justice in part thanks to the victim’s daughter, who turned detective to gather vital evidence of their wrongdoing.

All four women who were involved were sentenced by Judge Nicholas Barker.

Joanne Palmer, of The Precinct, Romiley, Stockport, was jailed for four years while Stephanie Palmer, of Dickson Road, Blackpool, was given three years and seven months in jail. Both had earlier pleaded guilty to fraud.

Also sentenced were Kelly Shaw, 41, who lives at Winterburn Green, Stockport, and Stephanie Charnock, 43, of Maplecroft, Stockport.

They admitted money laundering, allowing their bank accounts to be used to launder some of the cash fraudulently obtained by the Palmer sisters. At the time of her offending, Shaw was herself vulnerable and vulnerable to manipulation, said Judge Barker.

Described as a dedicated mother, she had shown genuine remorse, the court heard. She was given a one-year jail term suspended for two years. She must complete 20 rehabilitation activity days and a four month 7pm to 7am curfew.

Charnock was said to be the least involved of the four women, having allowed her account to be used for the transfer of £22,250.

She was given a two-year-community order, with 20 rehabilitation days and 120 hours of unpaid work.

Commenting on the haulage firm fraud committed by the Palmer sisters, Judge Barker said: “I am satisfied that the demands for money were done in an intimidating way.” The women regarded their victim as a “soft touch.”

The Palmers had threatened the business, and the children and grandchildren of the woman involved, said the judge.

He continued: “Not once did you have care or sympathy for your victim… Your intention was simply to bleed her dry.

“You did this in a determined and callous way. This fraud didn’t come to an end until her daughter became involved and only then did it stop.”Joanne Palmer (in blue) and her sister Stephanie Palmer as they left Carlisle Crown after an earlier hearing. (Image: Newsquest.) (Image: Newsquest)

The fraud – involving bogus demands for cash to fund online advertising which was neither asked for or ever published – was perpetrated by the Palmers during a series of intimidating phone calls and demands to the victim over several months.

During an earlier hearing, prosecutor Tim Evans said the Penrith victim was "bombarded" with phone calls demanding payment from Joanne Palmer and Stephanie Palmer – calls to her business phone and to her personal mobile, leaving the woman with no escape.

Mr Evans said: “The calls threatened that bailiffs would be at her home within the hour if she did not make payments.

“They were abusive and threatened to ‘finish her business’ and some said that if she did not pay, they were going to hurt her children and grandchildren.

"Due to the threats being made she was scared and convinced that the threats would be carried out so began to make payments.”

Large sums were paid to the sisters and to a lesser extent the Palmers' associate Shaw, who received in the region of £80,000, the court heard. In fear, the victim felt trapped and did not know how to escape from the situation.

At one point, the sisers told the woman that they would "finish her busines" and if she failed to pay up they would hurt her children and grandchildren.

Mr Evans added: “This fraud came to light when her bank became concerned about these enormous sums going out of her account which plainly did not fit with any business pattern for the transport company…

“The police visited and the woman, still terrified by the threats to her family and business, [the victim] initially told the police she was getting the money back and that everything was alright and she was not being defrauded.”

By the end of June 2018, the victim was so upset that she confided in her daughter and another family member, confirming that she was still receiving demands for money.

Mr Evans said: “Her daughter diverted the business phone to her mobile and soon she too began to receive calls making demands for monies.

“She pretended to be [the company secretary] during these calls and made recordings of them which were passed to the police. She also recorded the numbers that were ringing her.” By the time they were stopped, the Palmer sisters had defrauded the company out of £1,221,634.

From the dock of the court, Joanne Palmer interrupted the judge as he passed sentence to claim that she was remorseful for her actions.

This was a response to suggestions that she had failed to accept responsibility for her offending during an interview with a probation officer.

The court heard that she had struggled with substance abuse and had acted fraudulently in the past. "I can't find that you are genuinely remorseful," said the judge. Stephanie Palmer had only minor previous convictions and had experienced "significant harship" in her life as a result of "extensive domestic abuse," the court heard.

She was considered to be a "low risk of reoffending."

The Palmer sisters originally denied wrongdoing but on the second day of the trial, they both pleaded guilty to the two fraud allegations they each faced. They were cleared of the blackmail charges on the judge’s direction.