A father ended up in court for offering his daughter £5,000 to help her with the cost of living crisis. The problem for pensioner Anthony Mitchell is that he breached a restraining order when he sent his daughter a message offering her cash.
According to StokeonTrentLive, the 73-year-old dad texted her daughter, offering her £5,000 to help her and her family with the cost of living crisis. Mitchell's act of goodwill violated the restraining order granted in 2018 following a family fallout.
The restraining order lasts until 2030. It is a serious matter as magistrates at North Staffordshire Justice Centre heard it bans Mitchell from contacting several individuals, including his daughter. That did not stop him from reaching his daughter again back in February. He sent her a message, writing that interest rates have gone up and things are bad and will only worsen.
Dad's offer backfires as daughter reports him to the police
He then offered her the money, writing that the £5,000 belonged to her, according to the Mirror. Mitchell said he never wanted it back. He begged his daughter to please take the money if it would help her. Knowing that what he was doing was illegal, Mitchell told his daughter to please take a while to think about it before she called the police.
Prosecutor Zaine Riaz issued a statement, saying the defendant sent his daughter a text message. She never responded to her dad's message and rightfully reported it to the police.
Riaz added that the defendant told the police he was worried about his daughter bringing up her kids in the current financial climate, but she does not want any contact with him.
Mitchell pleads guilty to breaching a restraining order
Mitchell, who hails from Eaton Street, Northwood, pleaded guilty to breaching a restraining order and got his first criminal conviction. Mitigating Andrew Bennett said he had never encountered a case like this one.
He explained that Mitchell initially gave his daughter a £5,000 payment which he committed to when he had paid off his child's mortgage. The £5,000 payment was sent back, though, as there was an almighty family schism back in 2016, according to Wales Online.
Bennett said they went to court, and this restraining order was made on acquittal. Mitchell foresaw that the financial world would come crashing down when the Russians invaded Ukraine in February and decided to give the money back to his daughter.
Bennett said he found himself amazed that Mitchell was before the court. Magistrates told the defendant that breaching a restraining order was serious, but they went outside their sentencing guidelines, handing him a 12-month conditional discharge instead.
That means Mitchell will not be punished if he stays out of trouble for the next year. He also must pay £211 in court costs and charges.
