A Northamptonshire man has been sentenced to two years in prison for a scam that led 75 local children to believe they would be dancing at the closing ceremony at the Olympic Games – described by CPS East Midlands Senior Crown Prosecutor Ben Samples as ‘callous and deceitful’.
Stephen Moonesamy pleaded guilty on 28 June to eight charges of fraud for claiming he had been authorised by the London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (LOCOG) to organise a dance as part of the Games’ closing ceremony.
Using forged documents, he set out to deceive three local dance schools into taking part and several local suppliers into providing sponsorship for the fictitious event.
Mr Samples, Senior Crown Prosecutor in the CPS’s office in Northampton said: “Stephen Moonesamy charged each child for taking part as he built up an elaborate operation, gaining sponsorship from local companies, training the young dancers and securing the equipment needed to put this operation together.
“There was never any suggestion that he was authorised to act on behalf of LOCOG. His project was pure fantasy based on a lie that grew larger and larger over time, which he added to by his repeated fraudulent actions. However, he does not appear to have made a large personal gain from his web of lies.
“The most significant harm caused by his deceit was the distress caused to the 75 young people who believed they were part of a once in a lifetime opportunity, only to have this dream dashed from them. We can only imagine how they must have felt when they discovered the truth.
“We may never understand why Stephen Moonesamy decided to embark on this fraudulent project, or why he chose to deceive so many young people with his callous and deceitful lies.”
