Five charged in charity fraud case

A retired police officer was among five people charged yesterday in connection with an alleged fraud at a charity that made sick children's wishes come true.

Northumbria Police investigated the Dream Foundation after being given an anonymous tip that up to £300,000 had gone missing.

The organisation, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, was set up in 1994 with the intention of helping thousands of sick and terminally ill children.

Celebrity supporters, such as the Newcastle United footballer and former England captain Alan Shearer, supported the charity, which helped youngsters to travel abroad or meet their heroes.

Northumbria Police said David Foley, 54, and his wife Elaine, 49, had been charged with conspiracy to defraud the charity between January 1994 and December 2000. Also charged with conspiracy were Joseph Mulcahy, 54, and his fiancée, Maureen Lewis, 49, of Chester-le-Street, Co Durham.

Mr Mulcahy also faces a charge of deception against the HFC bank on 30 August 2000. Malcolm Grier, 61, was also charged with deception.

Mr Foley, a former police constable based in Gateshead, Tyneside, was suspended from duty by Northumbria Police when the investigation began. He retired from the force in May after 30 years of service.

The five suspects are due to appear in court on Friday.