John Westwood supplied an unlicensed door supervisor to a 'pop-up bar' in Bournemouth
On Friday 23 October, John Westwood, a Poole security boss was prosecuted at Poole Magistrates’ Court for supplying an unlicensed door supervisor to a ‘pop-up bar’ at an event at Bournemouth’s The Square on 05 August 2019.
Our criminal investigations team prosecuted both John Westwood and his business, One 2 One Security Ltd, for deception and for deploying an unlicensed door supervisor. This prosecution is the culmination of the investigation of John Westwood, One 2 One Security Ltd and the unlicensed door supervisor, Lloyd Biggs who worked for him on that night.
John Westwood was fined £250 and ordered to pay costs of £350 and a victim surcharge of £35 to be paid within 4 months. One 2 One Security Ltd will be sentenced at a hearing on 18 November 2020.
Our investigation began when a routine licence inspection by enforcement partner, Dorset Police, found that Lloyd Biggs had not completed the mandatory signing-in sheet. This raised the police licensing specialist’s suspicion and he asked after Biggs’ SIA licence. Biggs said his licence had shattered and that he had contacted the SIA to request a replacement.
However, the police officer noticed that what Biggs had, appeared to be an SIA licence in an armband displayed with the picture facing inwards. The officer asked to see the licence and discovered that the name displayed was J Westwood and the licence had expired in July 2008.
Dorset Police passed this information on to our investigations team and when we questioned Biggs, he said he had only worked for Westwood on that occasion. When asked about displaying John Westwood’s expired licence, Biggs said he didn’t tell Westwood he did not have an SIA licence. He claimed that Westwood told him to collect an armband to avoid suspicion. Biggs then said he had accidently picked up an arm band with Westwood’s expired licence but could give no explanation.
Lloyd Biggs appeared at Poole Magistrates’ Court on 14 March 2020 when he pleaded guilty to working as an unlicensed security guard. He received a £140 fine and was ordered to pay £150 in costs and a victim surcharge of £31; he also now has a criminal record.
Nathan Salmon, our Criminal Investigations Manager, said:
Both John Westwood and Lloyd Biggs broke the law, they have been successfully prosecuted and now both have criminal records. They had no credible explanation for why Biggs was wearing Westwood’s licence, and thought they could get away with lying to the SIA and Police; but the evidence was clear, and they were found out. The licensing regime is designed to keep the public safe and by working illegally they put local people at risk.
Further Information:
The Security Industry Authority is the organisation responsible for regulating the private security industry in the United Kingdom, reporting to the Home Secretary under the terms of the Private Security Industry Act 2001. Our main duties are: the compulsory licensing of individuals undertaking designated activities; and managing the voluntary Approved Contractor Scheme.
For further information about the Security Industry Authority or to sign up for email updates visit www.sia.homeoffice.gov.uk. The SIA is also on Facebook (Security Industry Authority) and Twitter (SIAuk).