A finance director who siphoned off almost £800,000 from one of the charities behind Notting Hill Carnival has “betrayed the community”, the organisation’s boss said today.
Nadia Chase Ali, 34, made 530 transfers, paying £784,262 into her own bank account between March 2014 and December 2016.
She disguised the money from the Carnival Village Trust and its trading arm Tabernacle W11 as payments to legitimate Carnival suppliers and clients, as well as to government organisations. Bank statements showed she sent large sums of money to her native Trinidad, Isleworth crown court was told.
Chase Ali, of North Kensington, was sentenced to six years on Friday after pleading guilty to fraud charges.
Matthew Phillip, director of Tabernacle W11, said today he felt “disgusted” and “betrayed” by the theft, which only came to light after the charity hired new accountants.
He said: “We are a very small team and everyone goes over and above what they would normally do when it comes to supporting each other. I feel betrayed personally and the community feels betrayed. This brings unwanted negative attention on Carnival when London more than ever needs people to pull together.”
Carnival Village Trust promotes Notting Hill Carnival arts and crafts across the UK and is one of the driving forces behind Europe’s largest street party.
Mr Phillip added that he was hoping the stolen money would be retrieved and repaid to the charity.
