The defendant, a man of good character, was a ‘Route Owner’, employing a team of drivers responsible for the delivery of thousands of parcels across North London postcodes on behalf of Royal Mail.
He was accused of being a member of a conspiracy in which phones, laptops and luxury items were fraudulently obtained through internet orders, for delivery at addresses in false names, unknown to the named recipients.
The parcels were then intercepted and diverted into the hands of the fraudsters. Parcel interception was achieved through the exploitation of insider information about Royal Mail delivery processes and IT.
The defendant was unanimously acquitted. Both co-defendants were convicted.
The cut-throat defence included admission of a ‘secret recording’, relied on by the defendant, of a co-defendant, which the jury were invited to find amounted to a confession.
Lucie Wibberley of the Garden Court Chambers Crime Team represented the defendant. She was instructed by Greg Powell of Powell Spencer Solicitors.