Jeweller in court over deception (From Penarth Times)

Jeweller in court over deception

A DATE has now been fixed for the trial of a prominent Penarth jeweller who will face charges of deception, theft and witness intimidation at Cardiff Crown Court next year.

The trial will begin on January 30,2006.

Riggs, 43, of Lynmouth Drive, Sully, is the owner of the Band of Gold jewellery shop on Windsor Terrace in Penarth town centre.

Riggs allegedly obtained £10,000 by deception between January 1, 1998 and September 1, 1999 by passing off a counterfeit yellow Rolex watch as genuine and £6500 by deception by falsely representing that a counterfeit Rolex Yachtmaster watch was genuine.

In February 2002, Riggs allegedly obtained £2950 by deception by selling two counterfeit Rolex watches which he claimed were genuine.

He is also charged with obtaining jewellery from a customer by deception.

Riggs is alleged to have agreed to melt the jewellery down to make fresh jewellery but instead put it up for sale and returned cheap bangles to the customer.

He is also alleged to have agreed to melt down a bracelet to make a new one but did not use all the gold in the new bracelet.

Riggs is charged with obtaining £14,000 by deception in 2002 after falsely representing that a three-and-a-half carat solitaire diamond ring was a 5-carat one.

Between August 2004 and February 2005, Riggs is alleged to have stolen an 8-carat solitaire diamond ring.

He is also charged with the theft of £1240 in cash from a customer in September 2004.

Riggs is also charged with three counts of witness intimidation.