A Bestwood charity worker, Heidi Bucknall, has been sentenced to over two years in prison for a £30,000 scam involving the sale of Alton Towers and Legoland tickets intended for terminally-ill children. Bucknall, 32, worked for PASIC (Parents Association for Seriously Ill Children), which supports families of children with cancer in the East Midlands.
Her fraudulent activities occurred between June 2015 and April 2021, and were uncovered when a company that donated free tickets discovered they were being sold on eBay. Investigations revealed that the eBay account was indirectly linked to Bucknall, who admitted to her manager that she had sold the tickets through a relative’s PayPal account without their knowledge.
In addition to selling tickets, Bucknall organized grants to be deposited into fake family accounts that were actually connected to her. She also stole two thermometers donated to the charity and sold them for personal gain.
Upon her arrest in March 2022, Bucknall confessed to the fraud and claimed she was under pressure to provide financial support to an ex-partner. She pleaded guilty to five counts of fraud by false position and three counts of concealing criminal property.
On July 5, Bucknall was sentenced to two years and four months in prison. Following the verdict, Detective Constable Anna Haynes expressed the significant impact of Bucknall’s actions on the charity and its beneficiaries, emphasizing that such exploitation is inexcusable. The charity has since implemented stricter governance and financial controls to prevent future incidents.