Newbury woman 'was victim of Cameo' auctioneers

Earlier this week, in the case brought by West Berkshire Council's Trading Standards Reading Crown Court heard how Jonathing King, boss at the former Midgham firm, lived the high while fleecing customers.
One client, Gill Ball from Newbury, said she entrusted £10,000 worth of goods to the firm after seeing Cameo featured on ITV’s Dickinson’s Real Deal featuring flambouyant antiques expert David Dickinson.
She said she contacted the auctioneers in August 2011 after her mother-in-law was taken into a care home.
Mrs Ball said Cameo staff turned up to collect the items and, when quizzed by Mrs Ball about an inventory list, told her it would take "a month of Sundays" to categorise everything.
She added: "I was told to just take their word for it."
Mrs Ball chased the company for her cash but was told the items had been split across several auctions and she should wait until they were all over.
She said: "I rang continuously and no-one ever answered the phone. I sent emails and got no reply, so I went over there on a Sunday morning when an auction was going on.”
Mrs Ball said she was promised someone would contact her but this never happened.
She said she continued chasing before reading an article in the Newbury Weekly News which stated the firm had closed down following a barrage of complaints.
The business ceased trading in April 2012.
In the dock beside 63-year-old Mr King, of Mattock Way, Abingdon is his wife Beverley and brother-in-law, Glenn Norcliffe, of Marcuse Road, Caterham, Surrey.
Mr King and Mr Norcliffe deny fraud by abuse of position.
Mr King denies charges of making false representations and Mrs King denies being concerned in the control or retention of criminal property.
During the opening of the trial on Tuesday, jurors heard customers were routinely “fobbed off” or sent dud cheques, while the bank accounts of online bidders were raided.
Mr King even treated himself to a luxury holiday at his victims’ expense, said Gordon Menzies, prosecuting.
He told jurors: “It’s not just that clients had difficulties and delays in getting their money – many never got paid at all.”
Those critics “lucky” enough to get a cheque often found it bounced, the court heard.
A common refrain heard by frustrated customers was: “The cheque is in the post,” jurors heard – and one victim was told that 20 times.
But worse was to come, for, as the net closed in, the company began raiding the bank accounts of online bidders who had used credit cards, said Mr Menzies.
He added: “It was not just ‘inefficiencies,’ as claimed and not just the scale of the complaints – customers’ items went ‘missing.'”
The true scale of the deception may never be known, the court heard. But it could involve sums of up to quarter of a million pounds.I
Cameo eventually closed and Mr King was declared bankrupt. But, according to the prosecution, his deception was still not over.
The trial is expected to last up to six weeks.
For a full report, pick up a copy of today’s Newbury Weekly News.