Former solicitor jailed for further fraud

A former solicitor has been given an eight month prison sentence for a fraud of nearly £20,000 from clients of a parcel firm which contributed to the company going bust.

David Nightingale had previously been barred from the profession for offences of fraud and embezzlement of clients in 2011 and 2012 while he was with Lanarkshire firms Cartys and then McAfee (click here for report and link).

In his latest offences he deceived customers of Glasgow business Prompt Parcel Ltd into paying invoices totalling £19,618 into his bank account when he worked there as a salesman. The company later collapsed for reasons partly blamed on these offences, which took place between April and December 2015.

Nightingale was found out when a colleague queried an unpaid invoice.

Sentencing him at Glasgow Sheriff Court, Sheriff Kenneth Hogg said: "It's a tragedy for you; it's a tragedy for a lot of other people." It was unlikely the money would be repaid – though some was recovered – and the court had "no option" but to jail him.

Nightingale was sentenced to 31 weeks at Hamilton Sheriff Court the previous week for keeping almost £8,000 paid by a client on the pretence that it would be used to settle an alleged liability to the DWP. 

In 2014 he was given 300 hours' community work with a £7,000 compensation order for defrauding clients of £12,500 while working as a criminal defence lawyer. He is still paying off that order.