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Student sentenced over fake will of Wolverhampton man

A student who signed a false name on a fake will to help a friend claim a £60,000 estate was spared an immediate jail sentence.

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Tufayl Ahmed signed a will as a witness with a false name, which his friend was going to use to try to steal the estate of the late Joseph Alan Bate, Wolverhampton Crown Court heard.

Mr Bate, of Highfield Court, Wolverhampton, had died in 2008 without a will, but with an estate valued at more than £60,000.

Mr Kevin Jones, prosecuting, told the court that a probate application was submitted in 2010 with a will dated November 2007, but it turned out to be fake.

The court heard that Mr Bate's neighbour Daniel Ball had put together the fake will and had asked Ahmed to witness it.

Mr Jones said: "Mr Ahmed signed that will in the name of Thomas Head."

No transfer of money was made and the will was discovered to be fraudulent.

The court heard that Daniel Ball, of Highfield Court, was found guilty of conspiring to steal in July, and will be sentenced in January.

Ahmed, aged 25, of Elmhurst, Bridgnorth, admitted fraud, on the basis he signed a single page on the document that had been put together by someone else.

Mr Thom Dyke, defending, said he had thought it was a reference for his friend.

Judge Martin Walsh told Ahmed: "What you did undermines the integrity of the probate system."

He was sentenced to 40 weeks in prison suspended for two years, and must complete 150 hours of unpaid work.

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