Three people deny multimillion-pound fraud at Welsh sixth form college

Three people have pleaded not guilty in connection with a multimillion-pound fraud at a leading Welsh sixth form college.
Two men and a woman face a series of charges in connection with suspected financial irregularities at Cardiff Sixth Form College between 2012 and 2016.
Yasmin Anjum Sarwar, 43, from Cyncoed, Cardiff, Nadeem Sarwar, 48, from Pentwyn, Cardiff and Ragu Sivapalan, 39, from Penylan, Cardiff appeared before Cardiff Magistrates' Court on Tuesday.
Both Mr and Mrs Sarwar denied nine separate fraud and theft offences worth more than £5 million.
Sivapalan pleaded not guilty to false accounting between 2013 and 2016.
Wayne Mortimer, the head magistrate, sent the case to Cardiff Crown Court for a pre-trial hearing.
He said: 'The case between the three parties will be adjourned until May 6 at Cardiff Crown Court at 9am in the morning.'
All three were released on bail, with a condition that Mr and Mrs Sarwar must not contact each other.
The college, a fee-paying school for 16 to 18-year-olds, regularly records some of the highest A-level results in the country.
In 2016, it was the subject of the BBC documentary Britain's Brainiest School.
The college has changed ownership since the alleged fraud, with the charity that previously oversaw it now called the Cardiff Educational Endowment Trust, which operates as a grant making charity.

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Wales Online

3 hours ago

• Wales Online

The latest Welsh police officers kicked out in disgrace

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The force told us anonymity was granted because of "safety concerns in respect of the officer" in one case and "restrictions imposed by a separate court process" in the other case. The South Wales Police officers PC Jamie Davies outside Cardiff Crown Court (Image: John Myers ) PC Jamie Davies started a relationship with a woman he had met on dating app Hinge and quickly embarked on a campaign of jealous and controlling behaviour which made her life hell. After pleading guilty to controlling and coercive behaviour he was handed a suspended prison sentence, 150 hours of unpaid work, 15 days of rehabilitation and a 10-year restraining order. The chief constable dismissed him from the force. ‌ PC Katie White failed to report her boyfriend's law-breaking until they broke up. She was in a relationship with a man from late 2022 until September 2023, then within days of the breakup she called police. She claimed her ex had been driving without insurance since January that year and had been driving under the influence of cannabis while his children were in the vehicle. The assistant chief constable said White ignored her duty to report criminal activity earlier, and added she would have been fired had she not quit. Former South Wales Police Constable Darren Whatley, pictured here in 2012 A misconduct panel found PC Darren Whatley acted in a "predatory" manner and caused "emotional harm" to three colleagues. He exposed his genitals to one woman, asked another to have sex with him in his car and told a third he would "gas" her. He would have been dismissed had he not retired. ‌ Off-duty Special Constable Joshua Edwards breached standards of professional behaviour involving authority, respect and courtesy with his behaviour towards an ex-partner. He would have been dismissed by the misconduct panel had he not quit. PC Spencer Crane was off duty and socialising in Cardiff's Caroline Street and the Hayes when he got into a scuffle with DC Jack Harris and an unnamed female colleague. The misconduct panel heard he grabbed the female PC "to the neck", causing her to fall to the ground, as well as "lunging" at DC Harris and fighting him on the floor. The panel found Crane was the aggressor and that he would have been sacked had he not quit. Sergeant Matthew O'Sullivan, from Merthyr Tydfil, was found guilty of damaging another person's phone at Tesco Express in Pontypridd (Image: Conor Gogarty ) ‌ Sergeant Matthew O'Sullivan was found guilty at Newport Magistrates' Court of criminal damage but he was allowed to keep his policing job. The offence involved him smashing the mobile of a 15-year-old boy who had made hoax 999 calls with friends. The chief constable spared O'Sullivan dismissal and instead imposed a five-year final written warning. 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You can read our piece on why this flies in the face of legal precedent and principles of transparency here. The other two officers were anonymised because of concerns for their safety. One was a PC sacked for gross misconduct. In the case of the second officer, a sergeant, misconduct was not proved. ‌ The North Wales Police officers PC Matthew Roberts showed bodycam footage of a dead man to his colleague PCSO Manon Roberts (who was also his girlfriend) while off duty. A misconduct panel heard he also showed her videos of himself arresting people and found parts of the footage "amusing". Roberts even sent PCSO Roberts pictures of the baby of a woman he had arrested. The panel concluded he would have been sacked had he not quit. PCs Terrence Flanagan and Kenneth Iwan Williams attended a domestic incident and made 'cruel, shocking and offensive comments' about a victim of domestic abuse. Their "misogynistic" and "sexualised" comments about the woman — and also about police colleagues — were caught because PC Flanagan had left his bodycam on. The chief constable found they both would have been fired had they not resigned. Former North Wales PC Owain Lewis (Image: North Wales Police ) ‌ PC Owain Lewis threw a tray of food at his ex-girlfriend (a fellow PC) after finding her in "a state of undress" with one of their colleagues. He also smashed his ex's phone and got into a fight with the male colleague. A misconduct panel heard PC Lewis and the woman had split up after an eight-year relationship but they still shared a home in Buckley, Flintshire, where the scuffle broke out in a spare bedroom. The panel ordered PC Lewis be dismissed for gross misconduct. In the cases of two other North Wales Police officers, PC Daniel Jones and PC Vincent Jones, misconduct allegations were found not proved. 'A mystery without any rationale' Former police and crime commissioner for North Wales, Arfon Jones, spoke to us last month about the importance of transparency after becoming concerned by the anonymity orders protecting Officer F and, initially, Justin Ellerton. "Why legally qualified chairs of misconduct panels and senior police officers grant anonymity to accused officers is often a mystery without any rationale, and it seems increasingly to be the norm rather than an exception," said Mr Jones, who had a long career as a police officer. ‌ "It is particularly worrying that accused officers are avoiding criminal charges in an open court and instead quietly being sacked and remaining anonymous," he added. "It is in the public interest that officers who have committed serious criminal offences are tried in an open court the same as any other citizen. Anything else will be perceived to be a cover-up." Gwent Police asked us to include a statement from its deputy chief constable Nicola Brain on the force's pledge to dismiss officers who "betray the trust and confidence of our communities". She said: "Our starting position is to hold all proceedings in public session, allowing us to be open and transparent with regards to the police misconduct process. But there are occasions when expert advice dictates, whether from medical professionals or ongoing criminal investigations, that some details will be heard in private session or with reporting restrictions. Article continues below "It is important that we also consider the impact of a public hearing on those who bravely speak out about misconduct before a determination is made." If you would like to tell us about an issue that should be investigated, you can contact our investigations editor at

Daily Mail​

13 hours ago

• Daily Mail​

SFA hit back at Rangers statement as John Brown TV row takes fresh twist

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Graziadaily

16 hours ago

• Graziadaily

Naga Munchetty Workplace Bullying Allegations: Everything To Know

BBC Breakfast presenter Naga Munchetty is facing scrutiny after being accused of inappropriate behaviour and bullying incidents on both BBC Breakfast studio and Radio 5 Live. According to a report in The Sun, Naga has been reprimanded for two allegations in three years – one that she bullied a junior staffer and another that she made a sex jibe off air on Radio 5 Live. These claims have emerged after the BBC announced that Richard Frediani, the editor of Breakfast and News at One, had taken some 'extended leave' amid claims of bullying against him. This came after 'unhappy' employees made a formal complaint against 'tyrannical' Richard, according to The Sun. The BBC has enlisted the help of a consultant to review the culture of its breakfast show. Sources also say that the BBC's HR team have seconded a lawyer from PwC to sort out the ongoing problem. According to deadline, staff have been approached about sharing their experience of working on the programme, according to the industry website Deadline. Naga has been a staple of the BBC breakfast show since 2010 and became part of the presenting lineup in 2014. The exact comment Naga is under fire for hasn't been reported. But according to reports, it was thought to be a crude slang term for a sex act, before directing the question at a colleague. The incident, which happened in 2022, was said to have left the audience stunned. Naga was reprimanded by a senior producer, but no formal action was taken. One source described the incident as 'Crass, inappropriate and wildly unprofessional. The person felt embarrassed.' According to The Sun, Naga was allegedly involved in the bullying of a younger member of staff last year, who was the most junior staffer. She reportedly accused the staffer of stealing without presenting any evidence. The confrontation led to a closed-door exchange, with Naga not issuing an apology after. 'It was humiliating. There was no evidence, no apology. The woman left not long after, completely demoralised,' said a source. Another insider explained the episode as part of a larger issue. 'That wasn't an isolated incident. It really is the tip of the iceberg,' they said. Alice Hall is the Staff Writer at Grazia UK. At Grazia, she writes news and features about pop culture, health, politics and interiors.