West Hull man's life ruined by Parkinson's Disease drugs

“in reference to the saints who are defending this couples' actions...lets hope you don't get scammed for your money then by anyone because then you might understand how we all feel! The trip advisor boasting was clearly not taken into account and i cannot believe that people are being sucked in here. this is clearly a scam and lets hope that all of you who are empathizing or sympathising are never scammed for your hard earned money!!!!!! i am absolutely furious at this outcome. in the article he claims to have "only confessed to my wife days before the police knocked on the door. " oh my! an amazing return of memory happens to appear just days before being caught! HOW can his wife not notice that he has that amount of money and she certainly wasn't heard complaining whilst flying to all the luxurious destinations and driving around in the extremely flash cars!!!!!!! how on earth did anyone not notice! I'm sorry, maybe i'm being biased because I Iost my hard earned money here, but I think they've really manipulated the whole system! i bet he was a very good town councillor!”

“I was scammed by this pair and do not believe for one second that their conduct was caused by a drug.

The wife was boasting about 23 holidays on Tripadvisor (recent ones that is) and an upcoming cruise even as I was having to disappoint my daughter with the news she wouldn't be seeing Take That.

eBay and PayPal refused to help so I lost £280

As others have said, it is inconceivable that SHE could not have noticed the effect of £450k worth of largesse and not wondered where money was coming from.

I wonder how this couple if living these days. Not badly I reckon.

I think there should be forfeiture of all their assets to pay back the £45k they stole.

Time for some civil action by the victims I think......”

“As a victim of the ebay scam carried out by these two . I fully sympathise if the parkinsons disease drugs can cause drastic changes in personality leading to gambling problems etc. However, to defraud innocent people of hard earned to cash to fund this problem is inexcusable. I too have had a family member suffer from parkinsons and sympathise with sufferers but the people condoning his behaviour on here clearly haven't been left out of pocked themselves by his actions.”

“As a victim of this ebay scam I think more should have been done to redress the balance in financial terms given that there are many people who havent managed to recoup the cost of the non existent tickets from paypal, ebay or the credit crad companies, regardless of his reasons for acting in this manner, there are many innocent victims of the scam who have been left with no recourse for getting their money back.”

“and as for East Yorkshire White, Beverley,....I can only assume you are either mentally retarded (let's be gracious and say that wouldnt be your fault) or otherwise, you just get your kicks out of being cruel. Shame on you. Assume you are still in the school playground. Is there a minimum age for making comments on here?”

“Due to the fact that my husband was diagnosed with Parkinsons when I was 38, I have learned a lot about the illness through research. I find many of the comments on here incredibly hurtful. Im glad for the debate, as any publicity that raises the awareness of the potential pitfalls of dopamine agonists is a blessing (for those of us who unfortunately need to be aware). I am trying to be gracious to those who are ignorant but i have to disagree with ECD's comment of 28/10/2009 at 17.41, "I just pray that those who have been happy to attack this man never get Parkinsons" and also JG, Midlands similar comment on 29/10 at 09.56. I feel so upset by your ignorance that if I were a gypsy I'd curse all those who ridicule with Parkinson's Disease..maybe then..and only then, they would make the effort to learn the facts before making judgement. I dont condone what this man has done, but i do at least have some understanding of why it way have happened before feeling worthy of making a comment on this thread.”

“Dear oh dear, I shall think twice before taking paracetamol if I get a headache.
Yes, a typical councillor (It wasn't me!)”

“Charles - Not personally but different drugs affect people in different ways. There are many people affected in a similar way to this man - by altering part of the brain structure in one way the drugs may affect behaviour in others. The facts of the case do to the vast majority seem indisputable - this man committed a crime and should be punished. However the particular drug he was taking cut him off from the stark reality of what he was doing - his behaviour changed as soon as taken off the drug. There are many more cases where people have been adversely affected in this way particularly with gambling. There have been many articles in the papers - one in the Daily Telegraph about a week ago which outlines the problem. I am not explaining very well but without understanding the nature of the disease and some of the drugs used to treat it it is unlikely that you will change your opinion. One feels for anyone affected by his actions - I guess it's debatable whether you would rather lose your money or dignity and self respect.”

“JG, Midlands
And your condition turns you into a criminally fraudulent crook?
No, its the use of his illness as a defence that is so pathetic; not forgetting his ever innocent wife.”

“I hope to God that none of those posting negative comments ever have to suffer this dreadful disease - I am 46 and my life is ruined - how 'hilarious' it seems to people to make jokes about the more obvious symptoms ie the shaking (Frankie Boyle comes to mind..). My body is slowly seizing up - some days I can barely move and the pain is intolerable. We rely on drugs companies producing medication just to help us exist but sometimes those drugs whilst addressing some symptoms cause other problems such as involuntary jerky movements, no doubt considered hilarious by some of your correspondents, others affect the brain in other ways as in this case. Myself I rarely go out - who wants people pointing and staring! Its a catch 22 situation - the majority of the public are ignorant about this disease and its effects but lets face it there aren't many like Michael J Fox who has the guts to parade himself and his symptoms in public, I know I couldn't!”