The wife, Ann, was also charged with four counts of theft
A few days ago, a family of eight left a UK restaurant without paying a bill worth 329 pounds or Rs 34,000 approximately. The incident came to light after Bella Ciao Swansea took to social media and said, "To the family who left the restaurant this evening without paying their bill, shame on you!!" Many people said that the couple had done the same thing at multiple eateries. Now, the pair, Ann aged 39 and Bernard McDonagh aged 41, were accused of dining at five restaurants within a 30-mile radius of each other, and leaving without paying their bill, as per a report in the New York Post.
They were busted for several "dine and dashes" at UK restaurants and for having free food over $1200 (approximately Rs 1 lakh). The two have been arrested and charged with five counts of fraud. Meanwhile, the wife Ann was also charged with four counts of theft, as per a post by South Wales Police on X (formerly Twitter).
A restaurant, which fell victim to the fraud, said that the family was able to pull it off because law enforcement did not consider the calls an emergency situation. "They use the same procedure with premeditation and continue to rob without any consequences," Spanish and Italian restaurant La Casona said. The two would be joined by four other people for a meal at the designated restaurant. Four members of the group would leave as soon as they finished their heavy meals, which would be as much as $400, leaving Ann McDonagh and a young kid to "pay" the bill. "We sent CCTV recordings, photos, and even the registration plate number. The response was: 'This vehicle is connected to many people," the owners said, adding that the police said that it wasn't an emergency and they could only report the incident.
Meanwhile, a few days ago, Bella Ciao Swansea, in a detailed post, alongside a picture of the family, informed that one of the women (Ann McDonagh) from the group tried to pay the bill using her card, however, it declined twice. She told the staff members that her son would wait at the restaurant while she would get another card. Within a few minutes, her son received a call and left the restaurant. They wrote on Facebook, "The lady tried to pay with a savings account card which got declined twice, she then said her son would wait inside while she went out to get her 'other card' of course she does not return and then the son receives a phone call and says he has to go and does a runner."
The restaurant stated that the number provided during the reservation also turned out to be "fake" and they later filed a police complaint. "We had no way of contacting you as the number you used to make the reservation was fake! so we had no choice but to report it to the police. To do this to anyone is disgusting but to do this to a newly open restaurant is even worse!" Bella Ciao Swansea said. They also published CCTV footage of the woman trying to pay the bill at the counter using one of her cards while her son was standing right next to her.