Welney Clerk Fraud

DRAFT (AT THIS POINT)

What this shows: The document directly states: D.C. Foreman confirmed the plea bargain proposal re pay back 22k { in return only to be cautioned ] on 9 March 2021 ,by the former clerk . the D/C sought and received superiors approval before proceeding; an Extraordinary WPC meeting took place on 15 March 2021; that unanimously agreed the plea bargain

[ MY UNDERSTANDING AS CHAIR / FRAUD SUPERVISOUR AFTER THE MEETING OF THE 15TH THE MONIES WOULD VERY SOON BE IN THE WPC BANK A/C

ONCE D/C FORMAN HAD A FACE TO FACE INTERVIEW TO CLARIFY IN THE REGION £600 CASH HAD ACTUALLY BY ALLOTMENT HOLDERS BEEN PAID IN TO FORMER CLERK

BUT AS I NOW UNDERSTAND D/C FORMAN BROKE HER LEG THIS FINAL INTERVIEW DID NOT HAPPEN }

Information which is now only coming to light seems to indicate around the time i was hospitalised a vacating the position of chair which happened at the may meeting of 2021. Information i am finding now indicates that Clerk Millard who i had every faith in seemed to suddenly stop her dialogue with Cox and Peter Gardiner who were the main stay of the investigation.{cox& and gardener had worked with d/c foreman to calculate the fraud figures} Other information i have seen seems to suggest Clerk Millard intended to use Cllr Barker in connection with monitory matters to do with WPC/Charity. Now this rather disturbs me and i intend to do further investigations to find emails and documentation which led me to go down this path. Since i came out of hospital i have received an email from the former clerk Jennifer Millard stating she has no record of the actual details with her handover to the WPC but seems to think she had sent them notes on the fraud situation. Which seems rather strange as current Clerk Melanie Hilton has sent me an email stating the WPC hold no records on fraud case which would indicate the theft of the monies situation by the former clerk.

ROGER Giles was hospitalised and unable to attend the following 4 May 2021 meeting; i resigned as Chair at that meeting via a message relayed by Clerk Millard; and MY Chair’s report, read aloud at the meeting, explicitly commended the fraud investigation team and D.C. Foreman by name.

I F YOU CAN PLEASE READ MY CLOSING CHAIRS REPORT YOU WILL SE I THOUGHT WE WERE HOME & DRY EVEN IF D/C FORMAN COULD NOT VERIFY THE CASH MONIES THERE STILL SHOULD HAVE BEEN 22K TO COME NOT,E I CONGRATULATED D/C FOMRMAN COX & GARDENER FOT RETREVING THE MONIES STOLEN

Why it matters: This document establishes that a formally supervised police-led plea bargain process was i agreed with council knowledge and approval before Giles’s hospitalisation later in the year causing his resignation from WPC which is directly relevant to his allegation that the subsequent December 2021 reversal of that agreement occurred in his absence without proper authority.

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File Note: Roger Giles – Personal Account of Welney Parish Council Clerk Fraud Investigation and Aftermath

This is a first-person file note by Roger Giles, former Chair of Welney Parish Council (WPC), describing a fraud committed by the former Parish Clerk, a plea bargain agreed in March 2021 to recover approximately £22,000 in stolen funds, and his account of how that agreement was subsequently reversed after he resigned due to serious illness. He also describes being issued with two ‘freedom of speech vexatious’ orders by the WPC, allegedly to silence his continued pursuit of the matter, and raises concerns about Councillor Ken Goodger’s conduct, including a failure to declare an interest at a key meeting in December 2021

{ I roger GILES & my Colleagues voices were blocked retrospectively Twice causing my efforts to negotiate a £1200 donation to wpc /trustes to fail }

The document states that: the former Parish Clerk was investigated for theft estimated at approximately £30,000 total (£8,000 recovered earlier, £22,000 outstanding); a plea bargain brokered by Peter Cox, Peter Gardener, and D/C Forman was unanimously approved at an Extraordinary WPC Meeting on 15 March 2021; Roger Giles resigned as Chair on 4 May 2021 and from the Council in September 2021 due to serious ill health; a WPC meeting on 7 December 2021 resolved to close the case without recovering the £22,000; Ken Goodger re-joined the WPC shortly before that December 2021 meeting and did not declare an interest despite having been the former Clerk’s direct superior during the period of the theft; Borough Councillor Rose has in writing put this statement to the monitoring officer but he continually declines to name two councillors he claims calculated only £8,000 was stolen; and two ‘freedom of speech vexatious’ orders were issued against Giles by the WPC

{ i have copies of letters sent to B councillor asking him to name these counsellors but no rely }

Why it matters: This document establishes the foundation of the entire dispute: a formally ratified agreement to recover public funds was reversed during a period when the key oversight figure was hospitalised and unable to participate, and the individuals now controlling the council include at least one person with a potential undisclosed conflict of interest — all of which, if substantiated, would represent serious failures of public accountability at parish council level.

I would like to make it clear I have a step by step official list of methods which are legal to resolve this matter Please listen these two recordings of myself talking at recent Welney Parish council meetings re public participation Please note Ken Goodger trying to deflect the truth by blaming me for not dealing with the fraud when i was in office I will also state i have innumerable copies of emails evidences the Welney parish council ignored also please click on to Welney web site hosted by Peter Cox for accurate detailed report on Clerk fraud i will further add that most of the minutes have been spin doctored to give a false impression to the public since i was resliced from hospital started asking these questions.

Peter Cox’s – Website – https://www.welney.org.uk/parish-council/parish-clerk’s-fraud.htm

Recording 1 – https://fen-artfulness.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Roger-Giles-WPC.wav

Recording 2 – https://fen-artfulness.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/ROGERS-MEETING-EDIT.wav

Case Overview

Roger Giles, former Chair and fraud liaison officer of Welney Parish Council, is pursuing recovery of approximately £22,000 in public funds stolen by former Parish Clerk Mrs Pat Copeman. A formally supervised plea bargain — brokered through D.C. Larissa Foreman with superiors approval and unanimously ratified at an Extraordinary WPC meeting on 15 March 2021 — was subsequently abandoned by the council in December 2021. Giles alleges this reversal occurred while he was hospitalised and involved at least one councillor, Ken Goodger, with an undisclosed conflict of interest. He further alleges that two ‘vexatious complainant’ orders have been issued against him and other whistle blowers in an apparent attempt to suppress scrutiny of these events.

Witness Statement

I am Roger Giles, former Chair of Welney Parish Council and the council’s fraud liaison officer during the active investigation. I was seriously ill and hospitalised throughout the second half of 2021, and I believe the agreement I helped broker — which had been unanimously approved by the full council — was reversed in my absence by individuals who had a personal interest in the matter being closed down.

I was seriously ill and hospitalised throughout the critical period in 2021. I kept the council informed throughout — I texted Clerk Millard directly with D.C. Foreman’s contact details, and my written Chair’s report was read aloud at the 4 May 2021 meeting in my absence, so the council was fully aware of both my condition and my continued support for the investigation.

Key questions in the case

1. Who specifically moved the reversal of the plea bargain at the December 2021 WPC meeting, and on what stated grounds — and are those grounds recorded in the minutes?

2. Did Ken Goodger declare a conflict of interest at the December 2021 meeting, and if so, did he withdraw from the vote?

3. What happened on the police side — did D.C. Foreman or her supervising DI ever formally close the investigation, and if so when and why?

4. What is the precise legal authority under which the two ‘vexatious complainant’ orders were issued against Roger Giles and others — and does a parish council actually hold that power?

5. Has Mrs Copeman retained the £21,000 that was confirmed as available for repayment, and is there any record of the repayment being made or withheld?

Decision Maker Summary

DECISION-MAKER SUMMARY — WELNEY PARISH COUNCIL CLERK FRAUD CASE

(1) WHAT THIS CASE IS ABOUT

Roger Giles, former Chair of Welney Parish Council, alleges that a formally approved repayment agreement — under which the council’s former Clerk, Mrs Pat Copeman, would repay approximately £22,000 in stolen public funds in exchange for a police caution — was unlawfully reversed in December 2021 while Giles was hospitalised. He further alleges that subsequent ‘vexatious complainant’ orders were used to suppress scrutiny of that reversal.

(2) THE CORE DISPUTE — UNANSWERED QUESTIONS

– On what grounds and by whose motion was the December 2021 decision made, and was it procedurally valid?

– Did any councillor — particularly Ken Goodger — vote on that reversal while holding an undisclosed conflict of interest?

– What is the current status of the police investigation and the plea bargain from Norfolk Constabulary’s perspective?

– Under what legal authority were the ‘vexatious complainant’ orders issued, and do parish councils hold that power?

– Has Mrs Copeman retained the £21,000 confirmed as available for repayment?

[ THE BULK OF EVEDINCE IS ALREADY ON HAND TO ANSER THE ABOVE QUESTIONS]

(3) STRONGEST EVIDENCE FILED SO FAR

– The file note documents D.C. Foreman’s confirmed Foreman’s superiors approved plea bargain process, establishing that the agreement was not informal but was formally supervised by police command.

– The reference to and URL of the 15 March 2021 Extraordinary Meeting minutes, which reportedly record unanimous council approval — once verified and filed, this becomes the primary documentary anchor of the case.

– Roger Giles’s own Chair’s report, read aloud at the 4 May 2021 meeting, demonstrating that the council was fully informed of and supportive of the fraud investigation up to the point of his resignation.

(4) RESOURCE ASYMMETRY

Roger Giles is an individual, was seriously ill during the period when critical decisions were made, and is now pursuing this matter without the institutional resources available to the council. The council, as a body corporate, has access to legal advisers, a monitoring officer relationship, and the procedural ability to issue orders that constrain Giles’s ability to communicate and escalate — two such orders are alleged to have been issued. If those orders were used to prevent Giles from raising concerns through legitimate channels, that is a factual matter requiring verification; the orders themselves should be filed as evidence. The practical effect of the asymmetry is that Giles faces procedural barriers to information-gathering that the council does not face in reverse. This is context, not yet evidence of misconduct — but it is relevant to any assessment of whether the complaints process has been accessible and fair.

(5) WHAT HAPPENS NEXT

The single most important immediate action is to download, verify, and formally file the minutes of the 15 March 2021 Extraordinary WPC Meeting as a standalone evidence item — this document, if it records unanimous approval of the plea bargain as described, is the evidentiary foundation on which all subsequent allegations of improper reversal depend.

Timeline of Events

15 Mar 2021

Extraordinary Welney Parish Council meeting unanimously approves plea bargain: former Clerk to repay approximately £22,000 in outstanding stolen funds in exchange for a formal caution with no court action.

04 May 2021

Roger Giles, still hospitalised, resigns as WPC Chair via message relayed by Clerk Millard; new Chair elected; his written report commending the fraud investigation is read aloud to the council.

Evidence Library

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This file note, authored by Roger Giles, documents the sequence of events surrounding the plea bargain offered by former Parish Clerk Mrs Pat Copeman to repay approximately £21,000 in stolen funds in exchange for a formal caution. It records the involvement of D.C. Larissa Foreman, the role of WPC Clerk Jennifer Millard in arranging the council meeting of 15 March 2021, and Giles’s enforced absence from the 4 May 2021 meeting due to hospitalisation, at which he resigned as Chair. It includes reproduced email correspondence, minutes extracts, text message references, and Giles’s own Chair’s report read aloud in his absence.

What this shows: The document directly states: D.C. Foreman confirmed the plea bargain proposal on 9 March 2021; she sought and received superiors approval before proceeding; an Extraordinary WPC meeting took place on 15 March 2021; Roger Giles was hospitalised and unable to attend the 4 May 2021 meeting; he resigned as Chair at that meeting via a message relayed by Clerk Millard; and his Chair’s report, read aloud at the meeting, explicitly commended the fraud investigation team and D.C. Foreman by name.

Why it matters: This document establishes that a formally supervised police-led plea bargain process was in progress with council knowledge and approval before Giles’s hospitalisation, which is directly relevant to his allegation that the subsequent December 2021 reversal of that agreement occurred in his absence without proper authority.

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File Note: Roger Giles – Personal Account of Welney Parish Council Clerk Fraud Investigation and Aftermath

This is a first-person file note by Roger Giles, former Chair of Welney Parish Council (WPC), describing a fraud committed by the former Parish Clerk, a plea bargain agreed in March 2021 to recover approximately £22,000 in stolen funds, and his account of how that agreement was subsequently reversed after he resigned due to serious illness. He also describes being issued with two ‘freedom of speech vexatious’ orders by the WPC, allegedly to silence his continued pursuit of the matter, and raises concerns about Councillor Ken Goodger’s conduct, including a failure to declare an interest at a key meeting in December 2021.

What this shows: The document states that: the former Parish Clerk was investigated for theft estimated at approximately £30,000 total (£8,000 recovered earlier, £22,000 outstanding); a plea bargain brokered by Peter Cox, Peter Gardener, and D/C Forman was unanimously approved at an Extraordinary WPC Meeting on 15 March 2021; Roger Giles resigned as Chair on 4 May 2021 and from the Council in September 2021 due to serious ill health; a WPC meeting on 7 December 2021 resolved to close the case without recovering the £22,000; Ken Goodger rejoined the WPC shortly before that December 2021 meeting and did not declare an interest despite having been the former Clerk’s direct superior during the period of the theft; Borough Councillor Rose has in writing put this statement to the monitoring officer but he continually declines to name two councillors he claims calculated only £8,000 was stolen; and two ‘freedom of speech vexatious’ orders were issued against Giles by the WPC.

Why it matters: This document establishes the foundation of the entire dispute: a formally ratified agreement to recover public funds was reversed during a period when the key oversight figure was hospitalised and unable to participate, and the individuals now controlling the council include at least one person with a potential undisclosed conflict of interest — all of which, if substantiated, would represent serious failures of public accountability at parish council level.

I would like to make it clear I have a step by step official list of methods which are legal to resolve this matter Please listen these two recordings of myself talking at recent Welney Parish council meetings re public participation Please note Ken Goodger trying to deflect the truth by blaming me for not dealing with the fraud when i was in office I will also state i have innumerable copies of emails evidences the Welney parish council ignored also please click on to Welney web site hosted by Peter Cox for accurate detailed report on Clerk fraud i will further add that most of the minutes have been spin doctored to give a false impression to the public since i started asking these questions.

Peter Cox’s – Website – https://www.welney.org.uk/parish-council/parish-clerk’s-fraud.htm

Recording 1 – https://fen-artfulness.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Roger-Giles-WPC.wav

Recording 2 – https://fen-artfulness.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/ROGERS-MEETING-EDIT.wav

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PLEASE C LICK ON ABREVIATIONS JUST BELOW CHRISS PAKHAM WITH THE LOSE WIMMEN IT MAY BE THE ANSER TO WHY SO MANY LIES ARE BEiING TOLD

At that time, I was serving as Chair of the Welney Parish Council as well as the Overseer. This meant I liaised closely with Mr. Cox and Mr. Gardener, both of whom devoted a great deal of their own time voluntarily.

Over the years, I came to greatly appreciate Peter Cox’s diligence and competence in his role as RFO, as well as Peter Gardener’s tenacity in retrieving copy cheques and related documents — both were invaluable members of the team. This period was a positive one, and D/C Forman, the police officer in charge of the fraud investigation, was very complimentary of their abilities. Their combined efforts ultimately brought the perpetrator to the table, resulting in a plea bargain requiring repayment of all stolen funds in exchange for a formal caution.

This agreement was fully ratified and approved by the full Welney Parish Council on 15 March 2021.

As I was unfortunately bedbound in hospital at that time, and expected to remain so for the foreseeable future, I resigned from my position as Chair on 4 May 2021. Dorothy Harvey was subsequently elected as Chair.

In August 2021, I experienced a very challenging period in my life when I was admitted to hospital several times due to serious health complications. During that time, I was diagnosed with four life-threatening illnesses, underwent two major heart operations, and suffered a near-sepsis episode that caused my haemoglobin levels to fall to a critically low level of 65. The situation was extremely difficult both physically and mentally, as I was also prescribed four different opiate medications to manage the pain and aid my recovery.

Given the severity of my health condition and the ongoing treatment I required, it became clear that I would be unable to continue fulfilling my responsibilities to the Welney Parish Council to the standard that both the community and I would expect. Despite my strong commitment to serving the parish, I felt it was only right and responsible to step down from my role to focus on my recovery and allow someone else the opportunity to take on the position without disruption. Therefore, in September 2021, I made the difficult but necessary decision to formally resign from the Welney Parish Council.

This decision was not made lightly, as I had valued my time and contributions to the council deeply. However, prioritising my health was essential in order to make a full recovery and regain stability after such a serious and life-threatening period.

Although the current Welney Parish Council has categorised and issued me with two alleged “freedom of speech” violations in connection with my ongoing efforts to recover funds that were stolen from the Council, I remain committed to pursuing this matter. These funds were once formally acknowledged and agreed upon during the Welney Parish Council Extraordinary Meeting, held on 15th March 2021.

Following a long and difficult period of ill health, during which I was treated at both the Queen Elizabeth Hospital and Papworth Hospital, I am now fortunate to enjoy a reasonable level of health and quality of life once again. With this renewed strength, I feel it is my duty to ensure that our village is not financially undermined or, as some might say, “sold down the road.”

In recent months, many residents have spoken to me and my colleagues about the possibility of reviving community sports such as football and cricket on the village field, along with other recreational activities. If the missing funds were to be returned to the Parish Council or its associated charity, this would provide a valuable foundation for restoring and supporting grassroots sports in Welney — something our village has a proud history of. In the past, Welney was widely regarded as one of the leading Fenland villages for promoting sport at all levels.

Now that my health has improved, I am in a stronger position to continue investigating this issue — an issue I was forced to set aside earlier due to my serious medical conditions. I feel a deep sense of responsibility to see this matter through, not only for the sake of transparency and accountability but also for the long-term benefit of our community.

I want to make it absolutely clear that this agreement was initially presented to me as Chair and was brokered through the determination and persistence of Cox and Gardener, working in conjunction with D/C Forman.

I believe the recent actions and apparent reversal of this agreement have completely undermined trust and done a great disservice to the people of Fenland Parish. Speaking for myself and my colleagues, we will not rest until we have uncovered the cause of this travesty of justice and taken steps to correct it.

To view more information please view the above timeline which shows circa £22K was about to be handed back to the community.

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Please note that the ex Chairman, who was chairman for the complete period of the Fraudulent activities of the former Parish Clerk, says at the end of the conversation, “You were a Councillor, you had a chance to sort it, you didn’t and we’re here now and we’re quite happy with it…” Then Mr Goodger cut me off in the public participation meeting stating, “… you should have done it in office, not anybody else”. Borough Councillor Rose put a question to Mr Goodger, stopping me in my tracks, so I could not put it to the meeting that myself, as Chair, and the Police Liaison officer, in March 2021, put the deal that Cox and Gardner had brokered with the DC in charge to the full WPC, and they agreed to allow a caution and collect the money. I feel it rather extraordinary that several councillors/Borough Councillors who were at that meeting where the agreement was made, were also at the meeting of 7th December 2021 when it was decided to drop the case, not collect the money, and just serve a caution. (See images below)

What I am saying loud and clear is that Mr Goodger re-joined the Welney Parish Council just prior to the meeting of 7th December 2021, where it was agreed to terminate the case. He badly broke the rules by not declaring an interest in the matter. I am saying, as he was the boss of the former Clerk when she perpetrated the theft, no way should he have been involved in any discussions on the way forward in connection with the theft.

SE WPC METING BELOW TOTAL SPIN DOCKTERING GIVE WELNEY PARISHINERS THE IDEAR THAT A SUBSTANTIALPART OF THE 22K THEFT hAD BEEN REPAID WRONG THE SMALL AMOUNT PAID BACK WAS BEFORE THE CURENT INVESTIGATION STARTED IN POINT OF FACT NOT A PENNY OF THE 22K WAS PAID BACK MY ALIGATIONS ARE EVERY ONEN WHO AGREED TO THESE MINUTES TO BE SIGNED OF SHOULD BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE

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When the D/C put this plea bargain to me as WPC Chair, I was very pleased and, once the the D/C superiors had given approval, from my hospital bed I gave Millard, the WPC Clerk at that time, the D/C’s contact details and communications. Millard put it before extra the extraordinary WPC meeting of 15th March 2021, to get unanimous approval. It was becoming obvious to me that I was in no fit state to continue as Chair. See my closing report of 4 May 2021, which I am sure will portray that I was expecting the Clerk’s theft monies to soon be in the WPC Bank. For the rest of 2021, I was mainly hospitalised. By September 2021, it was very obvious, due to my personal health, that I must resign. It was sod’s law that my colleagues Dr Pratley and John Loveday had life changing events hit them, plus Cox became a full-time carer. Also, our An ex-Chair, Tim Bennett died. This situation diluted the fight for justice. It appears that the D/C broke her leg and her final visit to interview allotment holders, to verify some payments amounting to £600 cash, never happened, thus stalling the repayment. Cox’s figures were perfect, but it seems that the police ran into a difficult illness – overworked, plus no training in fraud. The case starts to fall apart – computer evidences not up-to date, with figures chaotic, plus the situation was further complicated by a fraction of the WPC. As the fraud happened under their noses, they just want it to go away. So, there are two parties caught with their trousers down, so to speak, when whistle blowers start asking questions – WPC and someone in the hierarchy of the police. Their only card is the DARVO technique. In this instance, the whistle blower is Giles, ex chair/stroke WPC fraud liaison officer. He asked questions of the DC who was in charge of the Clerk’s theft investigation, and he asked questions of the original WPC Chair during the period Clerk stole the money.

Cox and Gardener situation These two people were methodical and produced very sound thefts figures. I personally had worked on projects over many years where Cox was a spot-on financial controller. To me, it was a big feather in their caps for them to broker a deal with D/C Forman that bought the perpetrator to the table, with her voluntarily offering to pay the balance of stolen monies back – circa just south of £22k, as £8k of the total’s £30k was paid back to cover the former clerk’s track in 2017.

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Welney Parish Council Meeting – 18th November 2025

I mentioned recently that I had visited the former Clerk who was investigated for theft from the WPC monies. I suggested to the former Clerk that she should pay the £22K that she had stolen back to the Welney Parish Council. The former Clerk stated that all monies were paid back 7 years ago. I stated that she had plea bargained to pay all outstanding £22K monies back in return for a caution, and it had been approved at the WPC meeting of 15^th March 2021 to accept her offer. (Clerk stated she had never agreed to anything, plus nobody believed those figures. It seems strange to me that if this former Clerk had not stolen the monies that I had mentioned, why did she not go to the police and report me for harassment.)

Just a script of what I tried to say during the Public Participation section of the WPC meeting, as my recording was somewhat hijacked due to the Chair heckling. I explained that at the last WPC meeting I was told by the WPC Chair, Ken Goodger, to go elsewhere for info on how or why the Clerk’s fraud case was closed down. (When I was fraud supervisor plus WPC Chair of the Extraordinary meeting, the perpetrator had admitted theft and a deal was done, with plea bargains to pay the £22K back in return for a caution with no court action. This is in the minutes of WPC meeting 15th March 2021. I explained that a police researcher had told me there was no record of any letters being sent to the WPC closing the case down. Then DC Chapman rang me, then texted me, saying she would get me an answer. Although this sergeant gave me her contact details, it was a long period of time before I made contact (I was a bit off course in the recording saying ‘next week’). At one stage, the Child Abuse Investigation office told me that DS Chapman was away on unplanned leave. Eventually, I managed to contact DS Chapman whose story was that WPC Gardner was their contact and that they closed the case down. Plus, the DS said go to WPC for detail. WPC Denise Lowry stated that Councillor Gardner was not a Councillor when the case was closed. (He was a Councillor at end of 2021, when case was closed.)

More detailed information can be found on Peter Cox’s Website

https://www.welney.org.uk/parish-council/parish-clerk’s-fraud.htm