A continuing clampdown on fraudsters by the Driving Standards Agency (DSA) saw another driving test impersonator appear at Ipswich Crown Court today. He was joined in the dock by ten bogus candidates who had paid him to sit their driving tests. Impersonator Omed Osman Ahmad of Stoke-on-Trent was sentenced to 39 weeks imprisonment suspended for two years. He was also ordered to pay £250.00 in court costs and complete 200 hours unpaid community work. Two of those sentenced received curfew orders after claiming they were unfit and unable to do community service work. All the bogus licences were revoked. Recorder Gerard Pounder said: “These offences are very serious and strike at the heart of the driving test process in this country. Paying an impostor to take your test, drives a coach and horses through the driving test process”. The bogus candidates, who had each paid between £300 and 500 to the impersonator, received a total of over two years in suspended sentences, 800 hours of unpaid community work and were ordered to meet £2500 in court costs. The DSA head of Fraud and Integrity, Andrew Rice said: “The Agency is committed to prosecuting offenders in order to preserve public safety and the integrity of the driving test procedure. “Failing to identify offenders presents major dangers to road safety because impersonators undermine the system by gaining entitlement to drive for those unable or unwilling to undertake the proper assessment. The DSA’s specialist Fraud and Integrity Team investigates all reported cases of fraudulent motoring activity. It works closely with police and criminal justice agencies and is successfully identifying impersonators and candidates alike to bring them before the courts. Andrew Rice added: As well as a driving qualification, many people seek possession of full U.K driving licence to establish proof of identity. Once that objective is achieved we are aware the fraudulent licence is used to gain other identity documents and to obtain a credit standing within this country. “We intend to remain vigilant in our pursuit of these fraudulent practices and the criminals who engage in them must expect more actions of this type.” Summing up at Ipswich Recorder Gerard Pounder thanked and commended all those involved in the investigation”.
19 September 2008