Londoner pretended to be cop to scam elderly couple out of live savings

A 26-year-old man from North London has been jailed after scamming a “devastated” elderly couple out of nearly half-a-million pounds. Ashley Marlon Thompson, from Islington, contacted the North Yorkshire couple in 2021 while impersonating a police officer and told them their bank account had been compromised.

Thompson then instructed the couple to purchase gold bullion to be collected by police couriers for safe keeping. The two victims ultimately spent more than £450,000 in gold bullion which amounted to all their life savings.

In summer last year, the couple reported the incident to North Yorkshire Police, prompting the Economic Crime Unit to instruct gold dealers to take note of suspicious sales. Thompson was soon arrested after attempting to sell one of the gold bullion bars in a London pawnbroker in November. While trying to sell the item, he claimed to have found the gold in a bag of tools inside a non-existent lock-up storage facility.

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Thompson denied any involvement with the scam throughout his trial, however, investigators found evidence that Thompson had created fake documents to prove the lock-up facility was real. The Londoner later pleaded guilty to one count of fraud by false representation and was found guilty of money laundering. He was sentenced yesterday (June 8) to 21 months in prison.

Detective Con Neil Brodhurst said: “Throughout the trial Thompson denied any knowledge of the gold bar’s origin, sticking to his story that he had simply found it in a bag of tools. He also couldn’t explain why he’d gone to the lengths of faking a hire contract for a non-existent lock-up facility to show the pawnbroker.”

He continued: “The two victims of this courier fraud were absolutely devastated by it. They were groomed over a period of several months with their trust and good nature callously exploited to the extent that they lost their entire life savings to someone claiming to be a police officer.

“Fraudsters use incredibly calculated and manipulative tactics to convince their victims that they are legitimate police officers or bank officials and will keep going until they get what they want.”

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