Conmen in court – Thief with magician’s technique, Royal Mail fraudster and Crimewatch suspect

There are few criminals more despicable than fraudsters and thieves. Unlike many lawbreakers, who act in the heat of the moment or out of desperation, this particular batch of bad eggs often spend days, weeks or even months cynically planning their elaborate schemes.

The motivation is always to scam quick cash for their greedy selves at the expense of innocents, whether they are vulnerable elderly residents or businesses. We have already compiled one list of deceitful crooks this year, but just a few months on we have another collection of conmen ready to round up from recent court cases.

Look out for the Selfridges scammer who used a magician’s technique, a window fitter who was featured on Crimewatch for his ‘gift of the gab’ sales racket, the Halfords worker who had a dangerous side hustle and the car dealer who sold ‘death trap’ vehicles.

READ MORE: ‘Dangerous’ masked robber who strangled woman in her home caught by woolly hat

Royal Mail scammer caught after thousands sent fake texts for ‘settlement’

Spammer scammer Mohammed Gulzar sent thousands of fake Royal Mail texts to people requesting a ‘settlement’ fee for a parcel to be delivered. He was caught with a ‘smishing’ – SMS and phishing – kit when police raided his home which comprised of phones and SIM cards.

The university student duped a 76-year-old woman into putting her Nationwide bank details into a bogus website. Gulzar seized control of her account and spent more than £2,500 of her money while trying to spend nearly £3,400 more.

The 22-year-old, of Nora Road, Sparkhill, admitted two counts of fraud and one count of possession of articles to be used for fraud. He was sentenced to two years, suspended for two years.

Selfridges scammer used magic technique to con cashier

Boby Angel used a magician’s sleight of hand technique called ‘Ringing The Changes’ to con a cashier at Selfridges in Birmingham’s Bullring shopping centre. The 43-year-old counted out £720 at the till but then distracted the shop worker as he removed a large portion of the cash into his left hand under the desk.

However he did not manage to fool the CCTV cameras which caught him in action. Angel admitted theft and was sentenced to four-and-a-half months and ordered to pay £400 in compensation.

‘Nasty, gift of the gab conman’ who was on Crimewatch’s Most Wanted is jailed

Bogus window fitter Paul Langford used his ‘gift of the gab’ to con people out of cash deposits but never returned to do any work. The serial fraudster featured on BBC’s Crimewatch for the scam shortly before he was caught.

He did return to one elderly man he spoke to, but only to burgle his home and steal £230 while he was in hospital. In another incident he snatched a woman’s purse as she turned her back. Langford targeted more than 20 victims as he went on a desperate hunt for cash to fund his cocaine addiction, which he claimed cost him £5,000-a-week.

The 38-year-old, of Hessian Close, Bilston, Wolverhampton, admitted 21 counts of fraud by false representation and one offence of burglary. The court also took into consideration four more frauds and one burglary offence. He was jailed for four years and ten months.

Halfords fraudster issued dozens of MoT certificates but made crucial mistake

Halfords mechanic Scott Anderson signed off dozens of illegal MoT tests for cars, which had never even appeared in the garage where he worked in Stafford. He issued 26 certificates in the space of three months in 2021 but slipped up by logging into the work system on a day he had called in sick.

He deprived Halfords of more than £1,000 in test fees alone, while it was not known how much money he made out of the side hustle. Anderson, aged 40, of Winding House Drive, Cannock, admitted 26 counts of fraud by false representation.

Judge Roderick Henderson warned that his actions risked ‘death traps’ being on the road. He sentenced Anderson to ten months, suspended for a year, and ordered him to pay £500 in costs.

Conman car dealer sold ‘death traps’ then told ripped off customers ‘tough luck’

Crooked car dealer Mohammed Sajad sold ‘death trap’ vehicles after deceitfully advertising them as ‘stunning’ on the likes of eBay, Auto Trader and Facebook. The 24-year-old turned the quiet residential street of Vibart Road, Yardley, into his personal forecourt and made his neighbours’ lives a living nightmare.

He swindled people all over the country with misleading adverts while using fake documents, made-up salesmen aliases and purporting to be operating as a number of legitimate businesses. Many of the vehicles he sold were unroadworthy and dangerous with multiple undisclosed faults.

One customer was told he was ‘lucky to be alive’ after driving back to Lancashire in a Ford Ka described as a ‘time bomb on wheels’. Sajad ripped off around a dozen people out of more than £58,000 in total payments, although it was believed the true loss was much higher due to the repair costs the owners were saddled with.

When buyers tried to return substandard cars they were either fobbed off with excuses or ignored completely. Sajad admitted conspiracy to defraud, conspiracy to launder the proceeds of crime and entering into a money laundering arrangement. He was sentenced to two years and 11 months.

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