A MAN who tried to cash blank cheques from his father’s business has claimed he did it ‘out of spite’.
Matthew Peter Apostoles pleaded guilty to two charges of intent to defraud by forging a record when he appeared at Rockingham Magistrates Court on February 2.
He was fined $2000.
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READ NOWThe prosecutor said Apostoles had obtained two cheques from his father’s panel beating business, written in the date and written an amount to cash of $3000 on each cheque.
He first tried to cash a cheque at the Mandurah Branch of the National Australia Bank, however bank staff became suspicious and after checking the signatures found they did not match.
He was not given the money.
That same day Apostoles tried to cash the second cheque at the NAB Rockingham Branch at Rockingham Centre.
Staff at that branch also became suspicious and did not cash the cheque.
When arrested by police Apostoles told them his father ‘owed him money’.
The duty lawyer said the police facts were accepted.
She said there had been a relationship breakdown between Apostoles and his father, however they had now repaired their relationship.
She said he would sometimes do panel beating work for his father and his father would pay him by cheque.
“There had been an argument between the pair over money where the father had told him ‘why don’t you go and steal it?’,” she said.
“Later on he had been cleaning out his house when he found two cheques and as his father owed him money – basically to use his words ‘he did it out of spite’,” she said.
Magistrate Vivian Edwards said it was lucky bank staff did not give him the money.
“I am told you have since repaired the relationship with your father,” she said.
“It is fortunate the bank staff were suspicious of as there would have been a detriment to the bank.
“You do have like offending but given the passage of time – nine years – there will be a global fine opposed to a prison term.”
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