New con man tries dry-cleaning scam

01 January 2000
New con man tries dry-cleaning scam

By David Shrimpton

Restaurants and hotels are being targeted by yet another dry-cleaning fraudster.

Premises around the country last week received letters from someone calling himself Richard Gough, asking for "the reimbursement promised for the drycleaning (sic) of my suit soiled by one of your staff on my visit to your restaurant approximately one month ago".

The address given is 109, Chevening Road, Queens Park, London NW6, although the letters were posted in Watford, Hertfordshire. The enclosed receipt, for £6.99, is from a book that can be bought in any stationers.

One recipient, Richard Carr, general manager of Hazlewood Castle in North Yorkshire, commented: "This gentleman has not visited our hotel nor does any member of staff remember this experience in our restaurant."

Meanwhile a dry-cleaning fraudster who blitzed hundreds of London restaurants with fake claims last month has resurfaced, operating from a new address (Caterer,4 June, page 9).

This one calls himself Christopher Brown and asks for £29.85 as reimbursement for an alleged spillage of red wine.

His latest address - the third in a month - is at 45 Bellefields Road, Brixton, London SW9.

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