A Welsh couple has been sentenced to prison for orchestrating a "prolific and brazen" dine and dash scheme involving children, officials say.
Bernard and Ann McDonagh bilked four restaurants and a Chinese takeout business for around $1,485 in a series of incidents dating back to the fall of 2023, The Associated Press is reporting, citing prosecutors.
The news agency said when a bank card offered up by the pair was declined for having too low of a balance, they would leave at least one of six children behind at the table while they claimed to head to ATMs to retrieve cash. Instead, they would not return, and the children eventually would escape into a getaway vehicle, the AP added.
"The prolific and brazen offending of Ann and Bernard McDonagh rightly caught the attention of a large percentage of the local public," South Wales Police Inspector Andrew Hedley said in a statement. "It is great to see that justice has now been served in the form of these sentences and thank those members of public who assisted with the investigation."
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"They deliberately ran up huge bills at restaurants which they had no intention of paying. This had a significant impact on the premises they targeted, one of which was newly-opened at the time," Hedley added. "Ann and Bernard McDonagh clearly felt that the law did not apply to them. This sentencing shows that it does."
Police say Ann McDonagh, 39, pleaded guilty earlier this month to five counts of fraud and four counts of theft (shoplifting), while Bernard McDonagh, 41, pleaded guilty to five counts of fraud.
Ann McDonagh has been sentenced to a year in prison, while Bernard McDonagh received a punishment of eight months behind bars.
"Affected restaurants included Bella Ciao and River House, Swansea; La Casona, Skewen; Golden Fortune, Port Talbot; and Isabella’s, Porthcawl," South Wales Police said. "Ann McDonagh also admitted counts of shoplifting affecting Tommy Hilfiger and Sainsbury’s at McArthurGlen Bridgend Designer Outlet and Tesco Extra, Swansea, as well as obstructing a police officer in the course of their duty at Queen’s Road Police Station, Bridgend."
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Judge Paul Thomas said during the sentencing hearing this week that the scheme was driven by "pure and utter greed," according to The Associated Press.
"You were not going to these places to feed you and your family, it was criminality for criminality’s sake -- to see if you could get away with it," he reportedly said. "I have no doubt, apart from the greed element, you had got a buzz out of what you were able to get away with."
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Ann McDonagh’s attorney told the court that she was grieving deaths in her family and may have operated the scheme "to make herself feel better," while her husband, another defense lawyer said, was "deeply embarrassed and ashamed" and brought money to court to reimburse the affected restaurants, the AP reports.
