Financial adviser included in a group of Mortgage fraudsters receive 18 years total jail time
The four fraudsters caught in a £5m mortgage and property scam received jail sentences at Swansea Crown Court totaling just over 18 years.
The group, which included a financial adviser and an estate agent, bought and sold properties across Swansea and south west Wales, using fake identities, companies and documents to trick mortgage underwriters.
The gang targeted unidentified lenders known to ‘ask less questions than others,’ according to the prosecutor.
Alleged ring leader Ben Pickering, 35, from Truro in Cornwall received six years. Mark Cainen, 44, received eight years while financial adviser Paul John, 44, was sentenced to three years in prison. Emma Davey, 34, the Carmarthen-based estate agent, received a 12-month suspended sentence for two years with 200 hours unpaid work, the BBC reported.
Pickering was once a prospective party candidate for the Swansea West parliamentary seat.
Pickering, Cainen and John all admitted a series of counts relating to conspiracy to commit fraud, whereas Davey denied a number of identical charges but was found guilty.
Judge Keith Thomas is reported to have said: “These offences were fuelled not by economic necessity, but by greed.”
Source: Mortgage Solutions – Mortgage fraudsters receive 18 years total jail time
