Barry Kevin McLarnon, of Deerfin Road in Ballymena, received a 10-month jail sentence at Antrim Magistrates Court in Ballymena on March 24. He pleaded guilty to seven counts of fraud by false representation from 2022.

Police received a report in 2022 from a man about suspicious transactions on his bank account. Cheques from his account totalling £5,000 and £3,500 were cashed. The cheques were payable to B. McLarnon. The victim did not know McLarnon and had not authorised the cheque book removal.

Attempts were made to cash further cheques worth £16,000, £6,200, £3,200, £3,200 and £1,200. McLarnon claimed a now-deceased friend asked him to use the account for the transactions.

District Judge Nigel Broderick noted McLarnon had almost four years to repay the £8,500 obtained but made no restitution. The judge stated the attempts sought an additional £29,000. Sentences of five months each on the two main charges ran consecutively for the total of 10 months. Other sentences ran concurrently. McLarnon received £500 bail pending appeal.