Bar duo faked gun raid at golf club

Jul 26 2008 by Neil Mckay, The Journal

BARMEN who invented an armed raid at the exclusive golf club where they worked could be jailed for stealing cash themselves.

Paul Porter, 19, and 22-year-old Martyn Galvin concocted a story of a pair of robbers wielding a gun and a baseball bat to cover up their crime at Mount Oswald Manor and Golf Club.

One called police to report the raid and even claimed he was bound with sticky tape by the raiders, whom he said wore hoods and scarves tied around their faces.

Porter of Douglas Gardens, Durham City, and Galvin, of Glaisdale Road, Yarm, Teesside, admitted theft of £600 when they appeared before Durham Crown Court earlier this month.

But they denied possessing a fake gun and perverting the course of justice.

When they returned to Durham Crown Court yesterday they both pleaded guilty to possessing the fake gun in a public place, But the prosecution withdrew a charge of perverting the course of justice.

The duo, who worked as barmen at the prestigious Mount Oswald Manor and Golf Club in South Road, Durham, were arrested in February this year following allegations that they plotted to make up details of an armed robbery to steal £600 from the bar float.

Police received a report that one member of staff at the golf club had been threatened by two robbers, who tied him up and took the cash.

Both men were remanded on conditional bail to return to Durham Crown Court on August 25 for sentencing after reports have been prepared.

They are banned from entering the Mount Oswald golf club premises or approaching prosecution witnesses.

Judge Esmund Faulks said: “I am giving no indication at this stage what kind of sentence to expect, and it may well be that a different judge will sentence you. All options are open.”

The golf club’s Georgian Manor House is a popular venue for weddings, conferences and other function.

Plans to build a £150m business park and houses on the 85-acre site, are currently on hold.

The uncertainty surrounding the future of the golf course prompted directors to issue a statement last month stressing that it was business as usual at the golf course and clubhouse.