As terrible as it is, it happens all of the time — men impregnate women and then attempt to shirk financial responsibility for their children. One of the first steps for moms obtaining child support is a court-ordered paternity test. It is a failproof way to establish paternity — at least in theory.
One UK man thought he'd found a way to fake a DNA test to avoid paying child support. William Boswarva, of Vauxhall, Liverpool, was ultimately caught in his deception. And recently, he was sentenced to 12 months in prison for conspiracy to commit fraud.
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William Boswarva sent another man to take a paternity test.
Boswarva received a child support letter months after a woman, with whom he had a one-night stand, gave birth to a baby boy.
"I got told it wasn't mine so when I received the letter [for child support] I was obviously skeptical," he told Liverpool Crown Court earlier in April, per the Daily Mail. "That's why I rang them up and said I wanted to do a DNA test to make sure." Boswarva sent in a friend to take a DNA test for him.
They got away with it at first because of a face mask.
The friend gave a saliva sample and signed papers indicating he was Boswarva on August 3, 2021, BBC News reported. An unidentified male provided Boswarva's driver's license and photo ID while wearing a face mask, adhering to the COVID-19 recommendations.
However, the DNA provided at Crosby Medical Centre did not match the DNA already on file for Boswarva. His DNA had previously been recorded when he was convicted for 11 other offenses, so authorities had something to compare it to.
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Boswarva claimed there was a 'mix-up' after his arrest.
When Boswarva was arrested, he claimed there was "some kind of mix-up," per BBC News. He confessed that he had sex with the woman but maintained he was the one who took the DNA test and that he was not the father.
"He was the only one to have an appointment for a DNA test that day. That DNA did not match the DNA held on the police national database for Boswarva," Prosecutor Kyra Badman told the court, per the Daily Mail. "It appeared it came from a different person. DNA as I'm sure you know, is unique to an individual."
At the trial, the court also learned how Boswarva attempted to pressure the child's mother to have an abortion and offered her money to do so.
On April 30, Boswarva was sentenced to 12 months in prison.
He was convicted of conspiracy to commit fraud and sentenced to 12 months in prison. Because he does not work or claim benefits, he won't pay child support. But he will remain liable as the child’s biological father until the child is at least 16.
The judge berated him for his actions.
At sentencing, Judge Recorder Neil Owen-Casey, said that Boswarva's actions caused the boy's mother “stress and anxiety and clearly emotional anguish," per BBC News. He added, "You have made her feel she did something wrong and she has not done anything wrong at all."
Owen-Casey continued, "At the heart of this is a child who is being denied the opportunity to know who his biological father is," noting that Boswarva "attempted to cheat the system in a clearly selfish manner."
