Topic: Robert Aspinall

A woman convicted of stealing an estimated $1.9 million in cash and property from an elderly Australian man she befriended had her 12-year prison sentence reduced to 10 years by the Cayman Islands Court of Appeal on Monday afternoon.

The Cayman Islands Court of Appeal is scheduled to hear arguments next week concerning the sentences of Michelle Bouchard and Robert Aspinall, who are serving terms of imprisonment for theft.

Cayman Islands prosecutors will appeal a 3.5 year prison sentence given earlier this month to a local accountant who admitted to stealing nearly US$500,000 from two investment funds he managed during a liquidation process.

Robert Aspinall, 38, was sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison Monday after pleading guilty to stealing nearly US$500,000 from two investment funds he managed during their liquidation in 2012 and 2013.

Accountant Robert Neil Aspinall pleaded guilty Friday to six of 14 criminal charges, including the theft of nearly US$500,000 from two investment funds he oversaw as a director at a major Cayman Islands accounting firm.

Speaking on behalf of his client on Friday, attorney James Austin-Smith said the conditions at Her Majesty’s Prison, Northward are “hardly fit for human habitation” and could make for a “very good case” if challenged under U.K. or European human rights laws.

A George Town man is now charged in connection with a fraud and money laundering investigation being conducted by the Royal Cayman Islands Police Financial Crime Unit.