To receive a knighthood or a British Empire Award from the Queen or the Royal family is one of the highest honors earned. Those who are recipients are very rarely stripped of their titles or honours unless they commit crime or act in such a way that the British Empire would not endorse. One such man has done exactly that.
Queen Elizabeth II Strips Former Royal Navy Officer Of MBE
Her Majesty the Queen has placed a notice in The Gazette official public record that declares the following: "The Queen has directed that the appointment of Iain Cochrane Shepherd to be a Member of the Civil Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, dated June 13 2015, shall be cancelled and annulled and that his name shall be erased from the Register of the said Order."
According to Hello! Ex-Royal Navy Officer Iain Cochrane was titled a Member of the Order of the British Empire 5 years ago by Prince William for his "services to European maritime strategy." He has lost his valuable title now that he has been sentenced to three years and eight months in prison by the Portsmouth Crown Court. The Press Association reported that Bognor Regis, West Sussex resident Iain Shepherd was convicted for stealing over £60,000 from his step-son with learning disabilities.
He reportedly forged his wife's (now ex-wife) signature to secure a secret bank account that he would siphon funds from his step-son Joshua Powell's inheritance account that was left to Joshua by his father Stephen Powell when he passed away. Iain Cochran was even supposedly a "close friend" of Stephen when they were in the Navy.
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Then over 3 years, secretly bankrupt Iain funneled his stepson's inheritance into his own secret bank account until his wife became suspicious. Now both the court and the Royal family have held him accountable for his actions. Not only have the Royals stripped him of his honour he was once so proud of, but he also has to repay a mere £19,497 of the money he stole from his disabled step-son. His now ex-wife Mary told The Portsmouth News, "He is absolutely despicable. What he has done is beyond words. He is a heartless, callous, sociopath. He is the lowest of the low and deserves to be in prison."
She was also happy to see that the Queen removed his title, "I'm absolutely delighted his MBE has been taken away. He should have never been awarded it because he was an undeclared bankrupt, a liar, and a cheat."
This would not be the first time Her Majesty has been forced to strip honours and titles. She also annulled the knighthood bestowed on the Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and removed the RBE given to entertainer Rolf Harris after his horrific criminal conviction.
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