Siblings sentenced in charity fraud case
Melanie May | 13 January 2025 | News
Birmingham brother and sister Rajbinder Kaur and Khaldip Singh Lehal were sentenced on 9 January, with Kaur jailed and Lehal receiving a suspended sentence.
Rajbinder Kaur was convicted of money laundering and six counts of theft, amounting to £50,000. This followed her theft of money that had been donated to Sikh Youth UK. She has been jailed for 2 years and 8 months.
Along with her brother she was also found guilty of knowingly or recklessly providing false or misleading information to the Charity Commission, under section 60 of the Charities Act 2011, in an attempt to cover up the theft.
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Lehal has been given a four-month sentence, suspended for 18 months, with 80 hours of community service.
Stolen money
Kaur and Lehal ran Sikh Youth UK (SYUK), which was formed in 2016. An application was made in 2016 to the Charity Commission for it to become a registered charity but closed when information requested by the Commission about SYUK was not given.
SYUK received donations during fundraising events including a sponsored winter sleep out and a football tournament both in 2018. Kaur transferred funds from the SYUK bank to her own account and then paid off her personal debts and loans as well as sending money to others including family members. The former bank worker had over 50 personal bank accounts.
Charity Commission inquiry
The Charity Commission launched a statutory inquiry into funds held by, and raised in connection with, Sikh Youth UK in October 2018, after West Midlands Police passed on concerns relating to charitable funds raised in the name of the organisation.
The Commission provided evidence to support the police in their investigation and written and oral evidence to the court which helped secure the convictions.
Charity Commission Deputy Director for Specialist Investigations and Standards, Tim Hopkins, said:
“We welcome the strong message given today that the theft of charity funds for personal gain will not be tolerated by the courts. Additionally, both siblings’ criminal convictions for providing false or misleading information to the Charity Commission highlights how seriously the courts take the offence.
“In working together, the Commission and the police were able to effectively deliver justice, as well as uphold public trust in charitable giving.”
Following the sentencing, Superintendent Annie Miller from West Midlands Police said:
“Kaur tried to portray herself as someone naïve about financial matters despite having worked in a bank. SYUK was clearly a means to fund her lifestyle and pay her debts off, but in the simplest of terms Kaur was stealing large amounts of money that had been donated by local people for good causes.
“This has been a very long and complex investigation into fraud, and we have worked closely with the Charity Commission to bring this pair to justice.”
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About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.