Who knows why Robert Faulkner and Nancy Bigras never made it to court Thursday. Maybe they knew they were done like dinner or maybe they just slept in.

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Jonathan Davies showed up at small claims court Thursday to take on a couple who took advantage of his trusting nature -- a condition of his Asperger syndrome affects Davies' ability to pick up on the warning signs of trouble -- and defrauded him of thousands of dollars during last winter's transit strike. The perpetrators didn't show up, but a large group of Davies' friends and supporters did.

Photograph by : Pat McGrath, The Ottawa Citizen

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But Jonathan Davies and his supporters were there. And by the end of his small claims court hearing, the 51-year-old Davies left no doubt that he was the victim of a cruel fraud by two vultures who took advantage of his gullible ways.

Davies has an autism-spectrum disorder known as Asperger syndrome, a condition that affects, among other things, the ability to pick up signs that something is amiss or someone is bad.

After ordering Faulkner and Bigras, in absentia, to repay Davies more than $8,000 they stole from him, Judge D.J. Dwoskin expressed surprise that the case had not resulted in criminal charges. Dwoskin made the comment after he was told that Faulker and Bigras are facing criminal charges relating to an incident in February.

However, Davies' lawyer, Tom Curran, told the judge he would send a transcript of the hearing to Ottawa police in the hope of having his client's case reopened. Following a brief investigation of Davies' complaint last winter, police decided not to lay charges. They urged him to seek restitution through small claims court.

Over a five-day period last December, Faulkner and Bigras got Davies to give them cash as well as buy them many goods under the premise that he was helping them out until they could pay him back. He bought them groceries, cigarettes, gift cards, gas, a car battery, tires, and even automobile insurance, using cash and two credit cards.

Last February, Bigras told The Public Citizen that Davies showered her with money and gifts in the hope of having sex with her, and that she wouldn't be repaying him. Davies denied the silly accusation.

The judge believed Davies' account from top to bottom, stating that he was accepting "all the evidence of the plaintiff" unconditionally. "The plaintiff was defrauded by both defendants," said the judge. "... It's a shock."

He ordered Faulkner and Bigras to repay Davies $8,072.39, plus interest and $175 in court costs. Dwoskin also ordered them to pay $1,210.86 for Davies' legal fees, even though Curran represented his client at no charge.

The chances of Davies getting back any of the money are slim, as Bigras and Faulkner are believed to be on welfare. But a condition put on the two at Curran's request is that if either files for bankruptcy, the money they owe Davies will not be excused, as it was gained fraudulently.

If anything, Davies can claim a moral victory. His articulate testimony and his amazing memory to recall dates, places, names and even word-for-word conversations -- another feature of his syndrome -- didn't allow Faulkner and Bigras to get away with what they did to him.

Gordon Montgomery, co-ordinator of Aspirations, an autism/Asperger support group, said prior to Thursday's hearing that 90 per cent of autistic people who appear in court are victims like Davies. He said there are "many, many more cases," but they go undetected, usually because the victims live in fear or believe they are the ones who caused the problem.