Briton Jailed For Swindling

Charity conman jailed

LONDON: A conman charity collector who swindled shoppers in Norfolk and spent the cash on Thai brides has been jailed for three years.

Detectives claim fraudster Dean White, 37, made at least £500,000 by rattling a tin and telling kind-hearted donors he was raising money for sick children.

But he spent the proceeds on prostitutes, two Thai brides, a car and paying off his mortgage.

Police said he had used Norfolk telephone directories to set up bogus collections at venues across the county.

In November a jury found him guilty of 27 sample offences of going equipped to cheat after the court was told he had handed over only £2,650 from £113,000 collected while working as a professional fundraiser.

The week after his conviction White was caught raising money again, while awaiting sentence, said Nicholas Barker, prosecuting, at Bradford Crown Court, where White was jailed for three years on Friday.

Det Con Ian Bolton of North Yorkshire Police said: "He operated for 10 years and our investigation only went back three years so we are just looking at the tip of the iceberg.

"In court he was charged with sample offences which were all up in the north but we know he operated in Norfolk."

White, of Sweet Briar, Harrogate in Yorkshire, splashed out on an £18,500 Renault Megane Executive car and moved to a £250,000 home after paying off his mortgage with the so-called charity cash.

Police say their "conservative estimate" is that he pocketed up to £500,000 over a decade.

His trappings of wealth included regular trips to exotic locations such as Thailand where he twice married Thai girls he met on his jaunts.

White first came under suspicion in September 1999 when he was seen collecting in Harrogate by a volunteer from the Starlight Children's Foundation.

A police investigation revealed a detailed diary outlining his wild spending and he admitted his only source of income was from collecting.

Sean Smith, defending, said White refused to accept that what he was doing was wrong and dishonest.

He said White sold his £250,000 home in Harrogate and was living on benefits and crisis loans at a homeless hostel in Leeds.

As well as outside stores in Norfolk, White operated throughout the north of England and as far afield as Gloucester and Portsmouth.

--Eveningnews24.com