A businessman has been jailed for four and a half years for stealing £300,000 from Help for Heroes by running scores of bogus charity collections.
Christopher Copeland sent teams of volunteers to all quarters of Britain in a fleet of old military vehicles to collect cash in buckets in supermarket car parks.
He ordered them to pay the money into his three bank accounts and used it to build up his All Terrain Vehicle dealership in Mid Devon.
When police raided his home they found he was about to start even more fraudulent collections for a different service charity called Afghan Heroes.
Copeland was jailed after a Judge told him he had abused the goodwill and trust of the public and risked the good name of the Help for Heroes charity which he purported to admire and support.
He now faces being stripped of his assets, including his collection of historic military vehicles, after the Judge ordered a fresh hearing under the Proceeds of Crime Act.
Copeland, aged 52, who comes from a village in Mid Devon, admitted fraud and money laundering and was jailed for four years and six months by Judge Phillip Wassall at Exeter Crown Court.
He was also banned by a Serious Crime Prevention Order from making any charity collection for five years after his release.
Judge Wassall told him the victims of his crime included servicemen who received help from the charity to battle devastating injuries.
He said:"The members of the public who gave money can properly be characterised as vulnerable victims because of the very nature of the charity, the high regard in which they hold Help for Heroes, and their corresponding enthusiasm to make donations which they may not have made otherwise.
"These were multiple victims whose desire to give was high. Offences like these dent public confidence in charity and show how easy it is for somebody so motivated to take money from charities.
"This offending was very damaging to Help for Heroes and the public are likely to question how safe their donations are and whether they will reach the charity.
"Any sentence must deter and restore public confidence by showing when people offend in this way there will be lengthy sentences."
Mr David Sapiecha, prosecuting, said Copeland started collecting and selling merchandise for Help for Heroes in 2009. He did so legitimately for about six months and passed on £20,000 to the charity but then started his swindle.
His bogus collections started in spring 2010 and continued until September 2011 when one of his volunteers became suspicious and tipped off the police, who raided his home and business.
Mr Sapiecha said:"In that 18 months the defendant deposited about £300,000 from public donations which should have been paid to Help for Heroes.
"He arranged for collectors to attend supermarkets and shopping centres. He paid for expenses and accommodation out of the money collected on the last day, so the money he put into his own accounts was net of expenses.
"He became a professional collector for Help for Heroes, which did not authorise that method of collection. There is no evidence of a luxurious lifestyle but he did use the money as a personal income stream and for the purpose of running his other business.
"He improved his business premises and equipment and if that business had become profitable, he would have benefitted.
"During a search of his home police found mechandise for another charity called Afghan Heroes for which he had registered as a collector.
"He owned a military Bedford truck and a Land Rover and employed people who he took to sites to collect money from the public, who were led to believe they were genuine collections by large signs on the vehicles, the buckets and the uniforms of the collectors.
"They were all emblazoned with the words Help for Heroes and there is no doubt the public thought they were donating to the charity.
"The public at large gave small amounts which added up to a very large sum of money. The victims were not just the charity but those who were willing and in an emotional position to give money.
"We say the aggravating features include planning, the fact this went on for 18 months, the number of people who were duped, the loss of money to the charity and the potential effect on the public's trust."
Mr Sapiecha said money was banked daily, or even hourly, if collections went well and was paid into three business accounts run by Copeland, who never set up a separate charity account.
Miss Ros Collins, defending, said Copeland always intended to pay all the money to the charity but his finances got out of control and he was unable to do so.
She said:"He thought he had a brilliant idea in using his interest in military vehicles to raise money for a worthy charity which he continues to admire. It was fatally flawed by the prohibitive expense of keeping the vehicles running.
"He hoped he would be able to pay back what he had taken but it never happened. It was not spent on luxuries or an extravagant lifestyle.
"Since this case came to light he has been demonized in the eyes of the public and all he can do is express his extreme regret."
Miss Collins said a website which Copeland set up while awaiting sentence which denied any blame and pointed the finger at his collectors was a response to the pressure he was under and did not affect his acceptance of sole responsibility.
After the case the police said Copeland was motivated by pure greed.
Detective Chief Inspector Mike Robison said:"He is a selfish individual. His motivation was pure greed over a protracted period of time.
"He employed people on his behalf for the charity. They were paid for their work. The monies were collected and given to Copeland. He did give some money to H4H but retained a considerable amount for himself.
"He was registered with H4H. He had a 4x4 military vehicle with H4H all over it. We are seeking to get back the £300,000 he has admitted taking from the charity.
"We believe he used the money to fund his business interests. He had a 4x4 vehicle company in mid Devon and spent a lot of money building up that business, or propping it up.
"This type of crime is quite rare. The public expect when making donations their money goes to the charity. In this case clearly that did not happen. And conduct like that leaves a bad taste in the mouth."
Help for Heroes say the public have been shocked by the case of Christopher Copeland, who has been jailed for swindling £300,000 through bogus collections.
Following the sentencing, Jo Brookes, Income Protection Officer at Help for Heroes, said:"Copeland deceived the public into thinking they were making donations which would help our wounded.
"Instead he was stealing from them and using the money for his own personal gain through a deceptive web of fraud which took detectives three years to untangle.
"We have been astonished by the response of the public. Many of those defrauded by him have contacted us to express shock that someone would use organised and criminal tactics to prevent money supporting the wounded."
