'Dine and dash' couple jailed after racking up large bills at restaurants without paying
ITV Cymru Wales' Dean Thomas-Welch reports.
A couple have been jailed after admitting a string of dine and dash offences which saw them rack up large bills at restaurants and leave without paying.
Bernard McDonagh, 41, and Ann McDonagh, 39, both of Sandfields, Port Talbot, who used more than 40 aliases and 18 dates of birth between them, dishonestly obtained food and drink at four restaurants and one takeaway in south Wales, with the unpaid bills totalling £1,168.70.
The couple, who pleaded guilty to five joint charges of fraud, were arrested after images of their scam were posted on social media.
Ann McDonagh was jailed for 12 months and Bernard McDonagh was jailed for eight months.
They ordered three-course meals for themselves and their family including T-bone steaks and desserts, with some being sent back uneaten.
Charges detailed how the pair first dishonestly obtained £267 of food and drink for themselves and their family at the River House restaurant in Swansea on August 9 last year, “having no intention of paying for it”.
They ordered £99.40 of food and drink from the Golden Fortune takeaway in Port Talbot without paying on January 31, doing the same with £276.60 worth of meals from La Casona restaurant in Skewen on February 23.
On March 27, the couple dishonestly obtained £196 of food and drink from Isabella’s in Porthcawl. They committed the same offence again on April 19, taking £329.10 of food and drink from Bella Ciao in Swansea.
Ann McDonagh also pleaded guilty to four counts of shoplifting, totalling £1,017.60, relating to thefts at Tesco in Swansea, as well as Tommy Hilfiger and Sainsbury’s at Bridgend Designer Outlet.
The thefts took place between September 6 last year and February 25 this year.
She also admitted one charge of wilfully obstructing a police officer in his duty at Queen’s Road police station in Bridgend on March 13, after obstructing police by falsely indicating that she was nine months pregnant, resulting in her release from custody.
Judge Paul Thomas sentenced Ann McDonagh to 12 months in prison and Bernard McDonagh to eight months, telling them their actions could have been motivated by “pure and utter greed”.
He told them: “From the autumn of last year to spring of this year, you two set out on a deliberate course of sustained dishonesty.
“You would go to restaurants with your own family. You would have food and drink served to you to the value of hundreds of pounds and then you would cynically and brazenly leave without paying.
“You would order the most expensive items on the menu such as steaks in the full knowledge that you had no intention whatsoever of paying for them.”
The judge said that using children to wait in the restaurants, who would then run off, while pretending to go to a cashpoint was “ruthlessly exploitative”.
He added: “You were not going to these places to feed you and your family, it was criminality for criminality’s sake – to see if you could get away with it.
“I have no doubt, apart from the greed element, you had got a buzz out of what you were able to get away with on a regular basis.”
The judge added that the behaviour of the family, from the traveller community, would “fuel and reinforce” negative stereotypes.
Representing Bernard McDonagh, Giles Hayes said his client had brought the money with him to court in order to pay it back.
He described father-of-six McDonagh as “deeply embarrassed and ashamed” by his actions.
Andrew Evans, representing Ann McDonagh, said she had suffered family bereavements and may have carried out the frauds “to try to make herself feel better”.
The offences
Prosecuting, Alycia Carpanini told the court how the couple went to the River House in Swansea with three children at 7pm on August 9 last year.
“They dined at the location and ordered a large amount of food,” Ms Carpanini said.
“Ann McDonagh attempted payment. She asked where the nearest cashpoint was. Ann McDonagh left a child in the restaurant to wait for her return and to pay.
“It was at this point the child asked to go to the toilet and ran from the restaurant. The total bill was £267.60.”
On September 6, Ann McDonagh went to a Tesco Extra store in Swansea and loaded a trolley with toiletries and alcohol worth £126.60 before pushing it through the self-service checkout without paying.
The family ordered a Chinese takeaway costing £99.40 from Golden Fortune in Port Talbot to their home address on January 31.
Ms Carpanini said the meal was handed over before the family closed the door on the delivery driver’s face and did not pay for it.
On February 3, Ann McDonagh stole six polo shirts and one pair of chinos worth £442 from the Tommy Hilfiger store at Bridgend Designer Outlet by hiding them in her gilet jacket.
She returned on February 17 and was seen breaking security tags off items before trying to conceal them, making off in a blue Ford Transit van – a motability vehicle – with £49 of goods.
On February 23, the couple and four children went to the La Casona restaurant in Skewen where they ordered three course meals with sides, worth £276.60, before leaving without paying.
Ann McDonagh shoplifted from Sainsburys in Bridgend on February 25, taking clothing and other items worth £400.
She was arrested for separate offences – which were not proceeded with – on March 13 and taken to Bridgwater custody suite for interview.
Ms Carpanini said: “The defendant told the custody sergeant that she was nine months pregnant. The on-duty medical officer instructed that she had to be released.
“She was bailed before interview. The Crown say the defendant was not pregnant on that occasion and lied.”
She later admitted a charge of obstructing a constable in the execution of his duty.
On March 27, the couple went to Isabella’s in Porthcawl and ordered £196 of food and drink. Ann McDonagh tried to pay with a card that was declined three times.
She told staff she would go to a cashpoint and left a child at the restaurant. They ran out 10 minutes later, with the family seen leaving in a white vehicle.
On April 19, the couple along with five others went to Bella Ciao in Swansea having pre-booked a table under the name Lucy Logan.
Ann McDonagh attempted to pay the £329.10 bill with a card that was declined, and told staff she would get money from a cashpoint – leaving a teenager there while she went.
Ms Carpanini said: “After five minutes, the boy received a phone call and said ‘oh no, really, I will be there now’. The owner attempted to stop the boy from leaving however he ran away.”
Restaurant owner 'felt like he had failed'
In a victim personal statement, Giovan Cangelosi, of Bella Ciao, told how he feared for the security of his restaurant after putting images and details of the fraud online.
Describing the impact of the theft, he said: “I felt like I had not protected my restaurant and had failed as an owner.”
'They have been brought to justice'
A spokesperson for the Crown Prosecution Service said: “The thefts committed by the McDonaghs have had a devastating impact on local family-run restaurants.
"These businesses, already facing numerous challenges, have suffered financial losses and emotional strain due to the McDonaghs' actions. They have today been brought to justice”.
South Wales Police previously confirmed the pair had been charged with the offences in April “following reports of several incidents of non-payment of restaurant bills and shoplifting”.
The case emerged after newly-opened Bella Ciao in Swansea reported that a family had left without paying a bill worth £329.
Inspector Andrew Hedley, of South Wales Police, said: “The prolific and brazen offending of Ann and Bernard McDonagh rightly caught the attention of a large percentage of the local public.
"It is great to see that justice has now been served in the form of these sentences and we thank those members of public who assisted with the investigation.
“They deliberately ran up huge bills at restaurants which they had no intention of paying. This had a significant impact on the premises they targeted, one of which was newly-opened at the time.
"Reducing and preventing business and retail crime is a priority within Swansea city, and any crime will be fully investigated, with those found offending brought to justice.
“Ann and Bernard McDonagh clearly felt that the law did not apply to them. This sentencing shows that it does.”
Russell Greenslade, chief executive of Swansea BID, said: “Our Business Crime Reduction partnership, funded and hosted by Swansea BID, played an important part in delivering this positive outcome.
"Our free Sentrysis reporting platform, which we provide to our businesses, was instrumental in facilitating this result, enabling us to efficiently track and address criminal activities within our city centre business community.
“The success of this case underscores the importance of our ongoing collaborative efforts with South Wales Police and the effective use of our Sentrysis reporting platform, alongside the other services and products we provide our businesses. Together with South Wales Police and other partners, we continue to make Swansea city centre a safer place for both businesses and the wider community.”
Writing on Facebook, Bella Ciao previously described how a woman tried to pay with a savings account card which was declined twice.
She then told staff her son would wait inside while she went to fetch a different card.
The post said: “… of course she does not return and then the son receives a phone call and says he has to go and does a runner.”
It described how the family had given a “fake” number to reserve a table at the restaurant, meaning the incident was reported to the police.
“To do this to anyone is disgusting but to do this to a newly open restaurant is even worse,” the business wrote.
The River House also posted on Facebook about the couple, stating that they had racked up a £270 bill before leaving without paying.
Writing last August, the restaurant said: “They run up a very hefty bill (for 5) and ‘promised’ to get cash from the local cash point after their card got declined.
“We like to put trust in some people, but this was obviously carefully planned as they all just disappeared.”
David Chapman, executive director for UK Hospitality in Wales, said so-called "dining and dashing" is a "constant problem" the hospitality sector faces.
He said: "There are an awful lot of honest people out there that enjoy using our hospitality premises, but it does happen. UK Hospitality estimates that every year this type of behaviour costs businesses as much as £10million in Wales.
"It’s heartbreaking when people put so much effort and so much of their life into creating the dishes people enjoy.
"It’s not just stealing food, it’s stealing business sustainability. It’s stealing staff benefits. It’s stealing the enjoyment of others.
"Because these businesses have to survive, have to grow, have to invest. You may think it’s a small amount of money but even with one dine and dash it can impact on profit margins for a business and cause problems that will impact on other parts of the business."