CHICAGO – A 75-year-old grandmother suspected of scamming a dozen car dealers by passing bad cheques has lost her attorney after the cheque she gave him bounced.
Attorney Stephen Ford dropped Betty Gooch on Wednesday, the same day a judge issued an arrest warrant for Gooch when she failed to show up for a court hearing in Woodstock, Illinois. “She gave me this sob story,” Ford told yesterday’s edition of the Chicago Tribune.”She gave me a cheque for a retainer and I took it.”The white-haired septuagenarian, who gets around with a walking frame and a portable oxygen cart, was scheduled to appear in court for a bail hearing.She has been charged with five felony counts of theft by deception and passing bad cheques.Gooch allegedly used bad cheques to pay for vehicles, including a Toyota mini van, a Toyota Matrix car, a Mazda sport utility, and a Chrysler mini van.In October 2003, Gooch admitted using a bad cheque to pay for a Harley-Davidson motorcycle.She was sentenced to a year of court supervision and fined US$385, according to news reports.- Nampa-AP”She gave me this sob story,” Ford told yesterday’s edition of the Chicago Tribune.”She gave me a cheque for a retainer and I took it.”The white-haired septuagenarian, who gets around with a walking frame and a portable oxygen cart, was scheduled to appear in court for a bail hearing.She has been charged with five felony counts of theft by deception and passing bad cheques.Gooch allegedly used bad cheques to pay for vehicles, including a Toyota mini van, a Toyota Matrix car, a Mazda sport utility, and a Chrysler mini van.In October 2003, Gooch admitted using a bad cheque to pay for a Harley-Davidson motorcycle.She was sentenced to a year of court supervision and fined US$385, according to news reports.- Nampa-AP
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