Council Funding More Apprenticeships Following Meniru Verdict

The ill-gotten gains of Bedford fraudster Hendrick Meniru are going to be put to good use by Bedford Borough Council.

The Council has put forward plans to allocate £450,000 to fund 15 apprenticeship places annually over the next three years. The places will be working within the Council which will partner with Bedford College as its training provider.

These apprenticeship places are available to all but will be especially promoted to groups which might particularly benefit from the scheme such as ex-servicemen and Looked After Children.

The funding is part of the total amount of £762,500 Bedford Borough Council will receive after the successful legal case against Meniru who was operating a series of international fraud schemes.

Following a five-week trial in March 2013 at Luton Crown Court, and after an investigation carried out by the Council's Regulatory Services, Meniru was found guilty of conning members of the public, usually the elderly or vulnerable, out of money through a number of bogus claims and promises.

Meniru was ordered to pay £3 million in total plus associated costs of £200,000. Under the Proceeds of Crime Application (POCA), the Council will receive the full costs of £200,000 plus a proportion of the confiscation order (£562,500).

As well as money being used for the apprenticeship scheme, it is planned that the balance of £312,500 will be used by the Council to carry out further legal and enforcement activities.

Mayor of Bedford Borough, Dave Hodgson, said: "We want to ensure that something positive can come out of this appalling, callous crime. This funding will be put to good use and shared between two vital purposes - providing training and employment opportunities, and the prevention of, and enforcement against, such crimes in the future."