A nanny who splashed tens of thousands of pounds in donations linked to a Black Lives Matter demonstration on her own lifestyle, including almost £6,000 on Uber rides and food deliveries, has been jailed for two-and-a-half years.
Xahra Saleem, 23, set up a Go Fund Me page which raised £32,344 for Covid-19 personal protective equipment at the landmark march in Bristol that saw the toppling of Edward Colston’s statue on 7 June 2020.
Leftover money was then destined for a city-based youth company, called Changing Your Mindset, which she was appointed director of to help bring in the expected windfall of around £30,000.
Trust was placed in Saleem as she co-organised the demonstration and was a prominent figure in the Black Lives Matter movement.
However, Saleem moved the money into a newly-opened personal account and went on a 15-month spending spree on “lifestyle expenses”, said Mr Alistair Haggerty, prosecuting at the sentencing hearing at Bristol Crown Court on Tuesday.
With no other regular income or wage coming into the account, she made 2,512 payments, including amounts on an iPhone, iMac, hair and beauty treatments, clothing stores, Amazon purchases, food takeaways and more than £5,800 on Uber, said Mr Haggerty.
She later confessed to a friend in a WhatsApp message that she had done “something horrendous”, adding “my brain spent it [the money], I couldn’t not tell on what, where or why- I don’t know what I spent the money on”.
Xahra Saleem admitted one count of fraud by abuse by position after a lengthy police investigation
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The company, meanwhile, persistently asked Saleem for the money, but was pushed back by excuses which included dealings with Go Fund Me and stays in hospital, said Mr Haggerty.
But the game was up when bosses at the organisation gave her an ultimatum to transfer the cash in May 2021, and she responded with an email to say she had spent it, said Mr Haggerty.
The email read “I am so sorry, I am still trying to explain my actions to myself”, said Mr Haggerty.
The loss in funds for the company resulted in the cancellation of a planned educational trip to Africa and the eventual closure of the group.
Saleem, of Briars Walk, Romford, had denied a charge of fraud by abuse of position between 23 June 2020 and 30 September 2021 when she appeared at Bristol Magistrates’ Court in January – but in September, she pleaded guilty to the charge.
The Black Lives Matter march in Bristol led to the dumping of the Edward Colston statue
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Appearing at Bristol Crown Court, Saleem, who was wearing a hijab, was sentenced to two-and-a-half years imprisonment.
Judge Michael Longman said: “You did not set out to defraud anyone, but you took the opportunity when you had control of the company’s money to spend it on your own expenses.”
The case brings to a close two years of turmoil for the leaders of Changing Your Mindset who believed they had struck lucky when money poured into the fundraiser.
The cash was set to secure the future of the group providing support to people aged between 18 and 24 through weekly sessions with cookery classes, career advice and life coaching.
And when bosses saw the amount raised surge, plans were put in motion to provide an educational visit to Ghana. The young people to go were chosen and asked to start preparing for the once-in-a-lifetime trip.
Xahra Saleem helped organise the march in Bristol in June 2020
A charity spokesperson told The Independent said: “We were led on a journey of deceit which was full of lies and left us having to clear our own names and close the charity.”
Mr Tom Edwards, defending, said Saleem had spent the money “carelessly, foolishly and unwisely rather than deliberately intending to steal”.
He said some of the items purchased – including the computer and taxi rides – were connected to a role as director of the youth charity.
But he added: “She had bitten off more than she could chew.” He apologised to the charity on her behalf.
Saleem had faced two charges of fraud, with the second relating to another online fundraising page that was set up after the toppling of the statue to help people arrested with legal fees. This charge has been allowed to lie on file.
The Black Lives Matter demonstration in Bristol received huge support, and when thousands joined and the statue of Edward Colston was dumped, it gained world-wide attention.
The coverage appeared to help the Go Fund Me page, which had been expected to make a few hundred pounds.
This is a breaking news story – more to follow