POLICE are auctioning designer shoes and jewellery bought by a former Truro secretary claiming to be a multi-millionairess.Devon and Cornwall Police are using the Bumblebee auction to sell expensive goods seized as part of a confiscation order.
The items for sale include designer shoes by Jimmy Choo, Prada, Russell and Bromley, Lulu Guinness purses and jewellery from names such as Gucci, Harrods, and Tiffany & Co.They were seized along with a number of other goods as part of an investigation into Helen Hart, 46, from Illogan, who was jailed at Truro Crown Court on 1 March.
She was sentenced to four years in jail after admitting 25 counts of theft and fraud. Hart conned more than £300,000 from her bosses, PDP Green Consultants Ltd in Truro, using stolen cheque books to fund her lavish lifestyle.
She fleeced company accounts to pay for a private jet to whisk her off to Paris, expensive cars, Premiership football tickets, rent and bills.A spokesman from Devon and Cornwall Police financial investigation unit at Truro said: "Confiscation of assets is part of the sentencing process.
"Helen Hart lived an affluent lifestyle which included buying expensive items for her personal use. She should not be allowed to benefit from the proceeds of her crimes and this process helps that be the case.
"We work hard to ensure that the proceeds of crime are taken from criminals. Legislation means in certain cases we can go back 6 years to calculate what a person has earned from their illegal lifestyle."
Since April last year the unit has confiscated in excess of £350,000 in Cornwall. Other criminals have been forced to sell the family home, car, or investments to satisfy a confiscation order as the alternative is a term inside prison which does not wipe out the payment requirement.
"We are proud that the confiscation amount either goes to the victim or if there is no victim then a proportion of the confiscation money goes back into the local community. We strive to ensure that crime does not pay".
Items will be available from Monday 25 March 2013 via the Bumblebee website, http://www.bumblebeeauctions.co.uk/XcAuctionPro.asp
