The sole trustee of a cancer charity has been ordered to pay back £117,000 for misusing funds – including on a planned project to build a 210ft Welsh dragon statue.
As a result of legal action by the Charity Commission, the High Court has ruled that money must be recovered and distributed to support cancer patients at Wrexham and District hospitals.
Simon Wingett, the sole trustee of the Frank Wingett Cancer Relief Fund, was the subject of a compliance case launched in 2017 by the commission, amid concerns about the charity’s management.
It was set up to relieve patients in Wrexham and District hospitals, particularly those suffering from cancer and allied diseases, through raising funds for medical and surgical equipment and facilities.
The commission said: “The charity came under scrutiny after its funds were misused to support the creation of a 210ft Welsh dragon statue as a tourist attraction.
“This project has no connection to advancing the charity’s aims and to date, no statue has been built.”
In July 2019, the regulator disqualified Wingett from acting as a trustee or senior manager of any charity in England or Wales for a period of 10 years and has since pursued the restitution of funds.
Tracy Howarth, assistant director of casework at the Charity Commission, said: “Charity trustees hold important positions of trust. We – and the public – expect trustees to ensure financial decisions are taken in the best interests of the charity and those it serves to benefit.
“Mr Wingett’s significant misuse of funds was an abuse of the trust placed in him by the many donors to the charity.
“This ruling will ensure the charitable proceeds raised are now directed to the benefit of those in the local community they were intended for.”
Wingett has also been ordered to pay £9,755 to cover the commission’s legal costs.