‘Career’ fraudster who swindled four women out of £320,000 after meeting them on dating site and tricking them into investing their savings is jailed for 12 years
- Emmanuel Scotts, 55, enticed his victims to invest savings returning small sums
- He met them on an online dating site and one woman paid £232,969 to him
- Scotts was jailed for 12 years where he was found guilty of four counts of fraud
A career fraudster who romanced women online before scamming them of over £320,000 has been jailed for 12 years.
Emmanuel Scotts, 55, enticed his victims to invest savings and would return small sums as interest to convince them to keep giving.
He met them on an online dating site and one woman paid £232,969 which Scotts used to fund his lifestyle.
After a two-month trial at Kingston Crown Court he was jailed for 12 years where he was found guilty of four counts of fraud and described as a career fraudster.
Emmanuel Scotts, 55, enticed his victims to invest savings and would return small sums
He also pleaded guilty to one count of possessing articles used in fraud and was sentenced.
Acting Detective Chief Inspector David Vint from the City of London Police said: ‘Scotts callously targeted innocent people with romance scams to fund his lifestyle, having no regard for the emotional, psychological and financial impact it would have on them.
‘Our officers carried out a tenacious investigation and were able to identify Scotts as the perpetrator and secure charges against him. This is a stark warning to romance fraudsters: we will find you and ensure you are brought to justice.
‘We would always urge the public to follow the advice of the Take Five to Stop Fraud campaign and always avoid sending money to someone you’ve never met in person, particularly if you have only recently met online.’
Fraudsters: Behnaz Scotts, who ran a VAT scam with her husband Emmanuel. The pair would pose as foreign tourists in order to claim back tax on returned goods
Scotts was arrested following an investigation by the Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit (DCPCU) which found he had taken a total of £324,083.
Detective Inspector Andrew Little from the DCPCU, said: ‘Scotts preyed on the emotions of his victims to gain their trust and several victims genuinely believed they were in a meaningful relationship with him.
‘Romance fraud is a despicable crime and we hope that the sentence handed down goes some way to helping the victims rebuild their lives and relationships with others.’
The prosecutor was not exaggerating in calling Scotts a career fraudster.
Last year he and his wife Behnaz Khoram-Scotts, 51, from London, both pleaded guilty to charges following an investigation by the Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit (DCPCU), a specialist police unit funded by the banking and cards industry.
Scotts, of Fulham, admitted conspiracy to commit fraud. Khoram-Scotts, of Wandsworth, admitted possession of articles for use in fraud and possession of criminal property.
The couple opened six different bank accounts with fake names after they lied about their professions to present themselves as wealthy.
They used those fake bank accounts to deposit cheques, one of which was for £81,000.
At the time prosecutor Sam Barker told London Crown Court police recovered 63 pairs of designer shoes from Khoram-Scotts’ home, including Jimmy Choo, Gucci, Louis Vuitton with her ill-gotten gains.
And back in 2014 they ran a £280,000 VAT scam on luxury fashion brand Chanel in order to fund a luxury flat in London’s exclusive Chelsea, private schools for their children and gambling at casinos.
The pair bought items at one of three Chanel stores and later return the goods to a different shop to obtain a refund or an exchange.
The couple, who claimed £32,000 in benefits, posed as wealthy tourists in order to claim back tax on returned goods They also misled staff into supplying VAT export claim forms for goods they had not bought.
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