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July 2011 roaming the Waikato, read below
He phoned a clinic in Lyttleton in June 2011 under the name Barry McLeod to book a full back & thigh wax. He had been into our premises and been abusive in August 2010.
After a brief stint in Tauranga Gareth McWilliams reared his ugly head in Christchurch again (Oct 2009).
An article had been written about him and was published in one of the issues of 'Hands On'. Read practitioner accounts below.
Also known as:
Most of the names are not very imaginative and sometimes he doesn't know them himself.
He has a history of booking massages (often under an assumed name) and not paying for them. Also booking massages and not turning up for them. I am also aware of a case of him behaving inappropriately toward a female. He has used different names in the past, presently has no contact phone number.
He sometimes claims that ACC will pay for it and has a record of not showing up for second appointments (if he shows for the first at all!).
He seems to seek out females rather than males, preferably some who work by themselves. The police has been alerted in a couple of cases where he made a booking, he did not turn up in the end.
Keep your fellow practitioners informed
Make sure your clients leave you a contact number and ring them back if you suspect a caller is not genuine.
Christchurch June 2011
We had a horrid time last August with him. Today he phoned and I instantly recognized his voice and rhetoric. He asked for back and thigh wax from our beautician.
He gave the name Barry McLeod and when asked for a phone number gave 022 032 0688. I have yet to try to phone back but will do after the weekend to see what name he gives then, or ifs the number is active.
I had previously told him he could not attend our clinic as we had all female staff and Pegasus had issued a warning! Truly I never thought he would try again!
Hi Edi
Was talking to Maria who receives your newsletter and she recommended I tell you that I'd had a client called David one week and Gareth the next!!
Now that I've had time to think about it, Karolina had sent me a warning about him a few years ago.
Anyway not a very pleasant experience. He asked for 1 1/2 hrs very deep tissue, my hackles were up the whole time. Had no money said he'd bring it next week as on a benefit.
Rang last Thursday to bring the money - calling himself Garath this time. Arrived gave me $25 wanting to pay rest later then to book another massage. Got a bit aggressive when I said this wasn't suitable. I rang the contact nb he' given me and got disconnected dial tone.
Rang the person whose name he gave me that recommened me.
She didn't know him just gave my nb out. Anyway he is rather creepy and both my daughter and were upset by him. Maria says you've issued warnings about him. So thought I'd let you know - hope he doesn't ring again but have feeling he'll move on to the next therapist.
Hi Edi
Just a warning to all that I had a booking made this morning from a Gareth Evans for a massage tomorrow morning.
Alarm bells rang at this name so I refered to the massage therapists site - and sure enough he has a new combination of his aka's. Of course he gave the receptionist a bogus phone number. I have contacted the police who warned me that he is a nasty individual - towards women, obviously they couldn't say too much.
Thanks to your website and the accounts that other therapists have sent in, it was helpful with identification when talking to the police - as I didn't actually see or talk to him. I am working at the Recreation Centre (Gym) at Canterbury University. Please publish my email, I just spoke to the police again as I couldn't get hold of this guy to cancel the appointment, to find out the best approach if he does show up.
They told me that he must have only recently come back to Christchurch - all current information they have on him is from Tauranga. I wanted to cancel the appointment and be honest and tell him that we are on to him and I will not have him as a client so he would get the idea that he is well known to us therapists but the police advised me to just say that we are fully booked or something - and not provoke him. Interesting.
So again Edi - thanks for the website. This is a good reminder to all to trust your instincts, as the receptionist only rang me because even though he didn't say anything wrong he didn't sound right.
Tracy Stewart
Booked for a massage with a therapist in CHCH, did not give his phone number although prompted twice.
Luckily the therapist recognised his voice from three weeks earlier where he had a session he did not pay for.
The name David Thompson was in the Press that same morning, although it is really only a variation of the themes above. Should have taken the name of the flying pig the day before (remember the tornado?) Pretended to participate in the Olympics, probably meant the Commmonwealth Games coming up in Aussie.
Never showed up in the end anyway.
We had a David Williams come into work twice about a month ago. He filled out new patient forms and made a booking then rang 2 days before it to say WINZ would be paying for his massage, firstly though I had to provide a written report of what treatment he received from me, then the WINZ payment would follow.
Yeah Right! The girls told him we didn't do it that way and that he would have to pay us and get WINZ to pay him back, and that was the last we heard from him.
When I heard the story I checked his phone numbers and sure enough they didn't exist! I never dealt with him the reception girls did. Their description was he looked like quasimodo (?) with one eye going off to the side.
Dear Edi,
just to let you know on Sunday a man who called himself Gerard Evans rang to confirm his appointment with us for 3pm today but the name we had in our books was called Evan Thompson for the same time, and would not give us any contact phone number, he didn't seem 100% about what his name was and gave a couple of suggestions as to what the name could be, sounds like a phoney to me, could you please send through the article you wrote about him last year so that we can prevent him from making further bookings at the spa. He is now using the name Edward McWilliams. It would be great if you could pass this info on to everyone.
He presented with a false name but when asked to fill in the form he used his real name, lack of consistency and planning by the looks of it.
Just wanted you to know that Gareth Williams (or Pinn as he's going by now) tried to book an appointment with me yesterday, he has tried at the physio down the hall eariler.
Luckily our other massage therapist had just brought in an email about him, so we weren't to surprised.
He's horrible!!!!!! Funnily enough we were full!
Anyway, maybe an email out to everyone on your list wouldn't go amiss.
I had the pleasure of meeting Mr Gareth Williams (aka David Gareth Williams...Gareth McWilliams).
Luckily alarm bells rang and I thought his story sounded familiar (he wanted a massage but that he was a mild epileptic and should he grab me while he was on the table, this was quite normal!!
I remember a conversation with two other therapists which sounded a lot like this). He said he had sore shoulders and neck from doing a lot of horseriding with the Riding for the Disabled, in fact his story sounded quite plausible.
A man fitting the same description was spoken to by Police in Fairlie recently for inappropriate behaviour towards a doctor and also earlier this week in Timaru.
I don't know if you have seen him, but the description of him is "a smaller version of Shrek". Quite fitting really.
Anyway, all the medical centres and physios and massage therapists here in Ashburton and Methven have been phoned and advised that he is in town, but just thought I would email you and let you know...in case you want to add it onto any of your newsletters.
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