News

Ex Montessori chief facing Old Bailey trial for charity fraud

Provision
A former Montessori chief executive is facing trial at the Old Bailey accused of taking part in a high-value plot to defraud a school over the sale of one of its London buildings.

Philip Bujak, is accused of the alleged con spanning seven years while he was at the helm of the Montessori St Nicholas charity.

The 56-year-old is jointly charged with a number of former Montessori business associates in connection with the alleged property scam.

Bujak's alleged crimes also include corporate credit card and invoice fraud, according to City of London Police. 

The investigation was sparked after Montessori passed information to police in November 2014, and Mr Bujak was arrested in January last year.

Yesterday (Mon) the four men and a woman appeared before City of London magistrates, who committed the case for trial at the Central Criminal Court.

He is on conditional bail ahead of a pre-trial preparation hearing on 16 May. He is prohibited from contact with any current or former employees or subcontractors of Montessori, except through his solicitor.

Mr Bujak, who was the charity’s chief executive from 2003 until mid-2014, is charged with two counts of conspiracy to defraud, one charge of furnishing false information relating to accounts, and two counts of fraud by false representation.

philip-bujakMr Bujak, (pictured), of Haywards Heath, West Sussex, is charged with two counts of conspiracy to defraud. He is further charged with furnishing false information relating to accounts, and two counts of fraud by false representation.

Married couple Andrew Penny, 53, a supplier to Montessori, and Julie Penny, 51, from Newton Abbott, Devon, are each also charged with conspiracy to defraud.

Adrian Dugdale, 44, from Notting Hill, London and Karim Eigner, 48, from Barnes, South West London, are also each charged with one count of conspiracy to defraud and false representation.

While he was CEO of Montessori St Nicholas, Mr Bujak was responsible for founding the Montessori Schools Association, which has around 700 Montessori school members across the country.

Montessori St Nicholas, a charity registered in Esher, Surrey, also runs Montessori Centre International, a Montessori teacher training college, which has its offices in Mayfair. Mr Bujak has also been managing director of MCI.