A serial con-man has been sentenced to eight years behind bars, after exploiting pensioners and stealing more than £1.6 million pounds.
Michael Mawdsley, 62, from Cheshire, preyed on elderly pensioners and exploited their wealth while claiming to be a financial adviser.
Despite not being authorised by the Financial Services Authority, Mawdsley acted on behalf of more than 200 individuals, recommending they invest their life savings into non-existant insurance policies.
However, his clients slowly realised that they had lost substantial sums of money and had received no documentation to support their investments.
After a concerned investor reported Mawdsley to police in 2005, detectives uncovered a web of deceit including false documents, passports and bank accounts.
After building up the trust of his victims, the Cheshire-based con artist even offered his elderly clients "equity release" on their homes, which risked losing their homes.
The investigation also proved that Mawdsley was regularly accepting cash, cheque and money transfers for considerable sums from his clients who handed over funds in the belief that the money was to be invested on their behalf.
Instead, Mawdsley exploited his elderly victims, keeping the cash for himself. Despite conning clients out of hundreds of thousands of pounds, he frittered away his victims’ money, running up massive credit card bills.
Detective Inspector Terry Tinsley, head of Cheshire Constabulary’s Economic Crime Unit said: "We hope todays decision to imprison Mawdsley for his reign of exploitation upon his elderly victims will help bring them a degree of closure.
"Blatant exploitation of one of the most vulnerable groups in our community 'the elderly' will not be tolerated and this lengthy investigation would not have reached a successful conclusion without the dedication of my officers and the evidence provided by all the victims affected by Mawdsley.
"We urge anyone who feels they have been the victim of fraudulent investment, or to anyone who has had similar experiences as Mawdsley's victims to contact their local Police and the F.S.A or Trading Standards, who will offer you help and advice."
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