An airport taxi boss ‘scammed his customer out of £120,000 and splashed out on flights, holidays and cars’, a court has heard.
Russell Bleazard, 50, is also alleged to have bought three BMWs, a £4,000 Japanese self-cleaning toilet and a £1,500 sewing machine using the debit card details of a client without their knowledge.
He legally got the bank information of Thomas Kramer (ex-executive of Seven Towns toy company), when he received payment for chauffeuring.
However, he then went on to use the card details to transfer £85,000 to his own chauffeuring business’ bank account, Regency Cars 4 Airports, before also purchasing more than £35,000 of goods and services for his family, a jury was told.
It is believed that this included self-cleaning toilets and bathrooms, along with flights to South Africa and Spain, and holiday to Cyprus.
Also, the money could have been used by the chauffeur to service or replace vehicles in his vehicle fleet including a Mercedes S-Class Mercedes and BMWs.
Bleazard, of Budshead Road, Whitleigh, is standing trial at Plymouth Crown Court charged with two counts of fraud between January and August 2017.
His wife Jacqueline Bleazard, 51, of the same address, is also standing trial charged with laundering the cash through her husband’s firm, as the operator of the business account.
Russell Bleazard was seen outside Plymouth Crown Court, November 9. Two counts of fraud are denied by him
Thomas Kramer (pictured), chauffeur of toy firm Thomas Kramer claims he claimed he spent the money in his business and on his family. The court heard
In June 2017, Mr Kramer, who was the founder and marketer of many well-known toys, including Rubik’s Cube in particular, passed away.
David, the son of the deceased, discovered that the payments had been unauthorised when he looked through the bank statements for the toys company after his father’s death.
Bleazard admitted to using his card at least partially for trips overseas with his family.
However, the chauffeur claims that every payment was done with Mr Kramer’s consent.
The toy boss, he claims was a “philanthropist” who insists that money should be used for his family and business.
Opening the case Tuesday was Tom Bradnock the prosecutor. Mr Kramer said that he used Bleazard as well as his employees drivers to get him from Honiton (Devon) to London and the rest of the country. The debit card paid for this service.
According to the court, after obtaining the correct card details, Bleazard transferred funds to his own business without permission.
Bleazard testified in his own defense that he had met Thomas Kramer back in 2014, and they became friends on long trips to London.
The court heard him say that Tom was very curious, and wanted to learn about his family. He just wanted to help. He was a kind and generous philanthropist.
Jacqueline Bleazard pictured leaving the Plymouth Crown and County Courts on November 9, where she is standing trial charged with laundering the cash through her husband’s firm, as the operator of the business account
Plymouth Crown Court is holding the couple on trial for fraud offenses dating back 2017
According to Mr Kramer, he asked for help after his two vehicles broke down during a road trip to the Lake District.
His customer asked him about costs for maintaining and replacing the vehicles. He claimed Mr Kramer told him he was willing to help.
Bleazard said: “I tried to say no, but he insisted. Bleazard was insistent that no one else knew, even Jacqueline.
He said that his boss at Toys R Us agreed to pay for a trip to Cyprus in order to visit his stepdaughter, after she mentioned she was there.
Bleazard answered questions about the self-cleaning toilet and said that Mr Kramer wanted it. He also purchased the Japanese lavatory on Amazon.
Bleazard received it at his Plymouth home, but he claimed Mr Kramer had changed his mind, and insisted that he kept it.
The defendant stated that he did no know that Mr Kramer was the owner of the card, even though the two cards were drawn on the same company accounts.
He said that he was also Not knowing how much money he took from his account.
The trial is continuing.