Founders of new sport sentenced over fraud

Paul Hildreth was one of the three founding fathers of Ryedale- based Rock-it-Ball, a cross between lacrosse and dodgeball, while Craig Buttery became a commissioner for the International Rock-it-Ball Federation.

As the sport grew, they successfully applied for National Lottery Awards for All grants and to Tees Valley Community Trust but were required to supply reports and invoices at the project end, Andrew Semple, prosecuting, told Leeds Crown Court yesterday.

Hildreth was connected to the Easi-Rockits while Buttery was linked to the Thornaby-based Spartans and the money was meant to go on equipment, coaching, hire of venues, promotional advertising and on holding a first world cup. But arrests were made in June 2009 amid suspicions that documents submitted did not always match as they should.

The money had been spent within the sport but not necessarily on the basis applied for, e-mails recovered from Hildreth showed. Some of the cash was spent on flights to the USA and car hire to push the game there but falsely invoiced as coaching.

Mr Semple said both men initially denied dishonesty but then accepted submitting “fraudulent invoices as a result of incompetence and chaos rather than anything else”.

Hildreth, 63, of Grey Garth, Newton-on-Ouse, York, and Buttery, 65, of Ryedale Crescent, Kirkbymoorside, each admitted two charges of false accounting with other offences taken into consideration.

Both were given 12-month community orders with 200 hours unpaid work and each was ordered to repay £12,092 compensation to the Lottery and £3,094 to Tees Valley Community Trust after Judge Christopher Batty said it was accepted there was no personal gain.