A man has appeared in court over allegations that he fraudulently signed off EWS1 forms declaring buildings as safe from the risk of fire.
Thomas Michael Clarke has been charged with fraud by false representation and appeared at Liverpool Magistrates Court on 3 August.
He appeared in court to plead not guilty to the charges as well as confirm his name, age and address. Clarke was given unconditional bail and will appear at Liverpool Crown Court on 31 August, where the case has been referred.
He is alleged to have signed off 88 EWS1 forms under the name Sophie Magee without her consent. He allegedly had the intention of making £17,600.
Clarke was charged after a 19-month investigation and in November 2020, residents of high-rise apartment buildings reported a total of 88 forms had been signed off by an unauthorised person.
The reports cover the period between 23 June and 12 November 2020 and were referred to Merseyside Police by the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB), and affected residents in locations including South Wales and London.
The correct checks have since been completed by authorised persons.
Shekina is the deputy editor at Mortgage Solutions and commercial editor at Mortgage Solutions and Specialist Lending Solutions. She has nearly eight years of experience in the B2B publishing market, having previously covered the hospitality, retail, pet, accounting and jewellery sectors.
Shekina has worked for Mortgage Solutions and Specialist Lending Solutions for almost five years. Here, she covers the market’s breaking news stories, engages with professionals in the sector, and oversees any commercially agreed content in partnership with mortgage-related companies.
This includes presenting webinars and hosting roundtable discussions on developing themes in the mortgage sector.
She is an NCTJ-trained journalist and was nominated for the Headline Money Awards Mortgage Journalist of the Year in 2021.
In her spare time, Shekina likes to read, travel, listen to music and socialise with friends.
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