0:00:02 > 0:00:04Millions of us are targeted in scams every year,
0:00:04 > 0:00:07and whether it comes in the form of an e-mail,
0:00:07 > 0:00:10a cold call or a knock at the door, they are all designed to do
0:00:10 > 0:00:15one thing and one thing only - to get you to part with your cash.
0:00:33 > 0:00:38Coming up - the scam that left a family facing financial ruin.
0:00:38 > 0:00:40We owed 1.4 million.
0:00:40 > 0:00:44And the con artist who made false claims about her healing hands.
0:00:44 > 0:00:47We were extremely concerned because,
0:00:47 > 0:00:50if she was treating patients for a specific injury,
0:00:50 > 0:00:54then she was more likely to do more harm than good.
0:00:54 > 0:00:57Well, I'm here to tell you what the con man doesn't want you to know -
0:00:57 > 0:01:00how to stay one step ahead of the game and not get scammed.
0:01:08 > 0:01:13Working from home with your own cottage industry can be fantastic.
0:01:13 > 0:01:16There's no lengthy commute, and you keep your overheads low.
0:01:16 > 0:01:19But there can be other significant advantages
0:01:19 > 0:01:21to running a business from home.
0:01:21 > 0:01:25Clifford and Elaine Bartlett have two grown-up children
0:01:25 > 0:01:29who are both severely disabled and require full-time care.
0:01:29 > 0:01:31Well done. Tip them in the bowl.
0:01:32 > 0:01:35To give their children the attention and support they need,
0:01:35 > 0:01:37Clifford and Elaine run their business,
0:01:37 > 0:01:39producing sheet music, from home.
0:01:41 > 0:01:44But with such a challenging home life, the couple have always
0:01:44 > 0:01:47had to rely on people they trust to help make their business a success.
0:01:49 > 0:01:51What they didn't realise was that for 20 years
0:01:51 > 0:01:53they were harbouring a con man.
0:01:56 > 0:01:58What's really important at the heart of any scam is that there is
0:01:58 > 0:02:03a trusting relationship in place between the scammer and the victim.
0:02:03 > 0:02:06Most people are very suspicious of people offering
0:02:06 > 0:02:09something for nothing, but if it comes from a friend,
0:02:09 > 0:02:11if it comes from somebody you've built rapport with,
0:02:11 > 0:02:14then you've got the basis of a very good scam.
0:02:14 > 0:02:17And the scam that targeted Clifford and Elaine
0:02:17 > 0:02:18is as shocking as they come.
0:02:18 > 0:02:22It's taken the couple for every penny they had.
0:02:22 > 0:02:23- Do come in.- Thank you very much.
0:02:24 > 0:02:26The seeds of it were sown 20 years ago
0:02:26 > 0:02:29when the couple were building up their sheet music business
0:02:29 > 0:02:31hoping it would provide them with a stable income.
0:02:33 > 0:02:36We don't really care, as you can see, about modern house things.
0:02:36 > 0:02:38We don't spend a lot on clothes.
0:02:38 > 0:02:40Motivation certainly wasn't money.
0:02:40 > 0:02:43As long as we had adequate, we weren't really worried.
0:02:43 > 0:02:47As long as we knew we would be able to save some for the kids.
0:02:47 > 0:02:50The nature of Clifford and Elaine's business
0:02:50 > 0:02:52meant a photocopier is essential,
0:02:52 > 0:02:56but rather than buy one outright, they decided to lease instead.
0:02:56 > 0:02:59We knew nothing about the photocopying industry.
0:02:59 > 0:03:05We started with a very small firm in Cambridge, which, over the years,
0:03:05 > 0:03:10was taken over, and that's when we came into contact with salesmen.
0:03:10 > 0:03:13The salesman in question was Gary Carr,
0:03:13 > 0:03:16and he and the couple quickly hit it off.
0:03:16 > 0:03:19- How did he come across? - Oh, he was very friendly.
0:03:19 > 0:03:22He would talk about his kids and say, "Of course,
0:03:22 > 0:03:25"I've got no problems compared with your situation."
0:03:25 > 0:03:28And when it came to organising their photocopiers,
0:03:28 > 0:03:33Carr made Clifford and Elaine feel that they were in safe hands.
0:03:33 > 0:03:36- How did it work? - He did all the leasing.
0:03:36 > 0:03:40He said, "You need so-and-so..." We had to have big machines
0:03:40 > 0:03:42because we had a high turnover.
0:03:42 > 0:03:45"This will be a reliable machine.
0:03:45 > 0:03:48"This is the price I can get it for," and he'd arrange a lease,
0:03:48 > 0:03:50which would be a five-years lease.
0:03:50 > 0:03:55With the photocopiers taken care of by Carr, the couple were free
0:03:55 > 0:03:58to concentrate on the things that were most important to them.
0:04:00 > 0:04:03A key element of a business which makes them susceptible to a scam
0:04:03 > 0:04:04is just the sheer pace
0:04:04 > 0:04:07at which they're operating in their daily lives.
0:04:07 > 0:04:09For a lot of people who work at home,
0:04:09 > 0:04:11it's very difficult to see the boundaries, isn't it?
0:04:11 > 0:04:15When the kids are at home, one or other of us is with them
0:04:15 > 0:04:19or in the vicinity of them. They usually need one of us around.
0:04:19 > 0:04:21If the children were in the house,
0:04:21 > 0:04:24then what they were doing was one concern.
0:04:24 > 0:04:28If we had a rush job on, that was another concern.
0:04:28 > 0:04:32Generally, we just wanted to get a machine that worked.
0:04:32 > 0:04:36And Carr was able to give the couple exactly what they needed
0:04:36 > 0:04:38at a price they were happy with.
0:04:38 > 0:04:41He quickly became an integral part of their working life.
0:04:43 > 0:04:45He'd been to the house.
0:04:45 > 0:04:48He knew what we needed, and he kept us up-to-date,
0:04:48 > 0:04:51because we didn't know anything about the technology.
0:04:51 > 0:04:54Over the next few years Carr handled all of
0:04:54 > 0:04:57Clifford and Elaine's photocopier needs
0:04:57 > 0:05:00and as time went on, he became more than just a salesman.
0:05:02 > 0:05:05They'll find out about the hobbies of the individual.
0:05:05 > 0:05:07They may pop round to their house and get to know their children,
0:05:07 > 0:05:12which then makes the victim more susceptible to new offers
0:05:12 > 0:05:14that the particular salesman is coming up with.
0:05:14 > 0:05:18In the olden days, you had commercial travellers who would go round
0:05:18 > 0:05:20and they might stay a whole morning chatting,
0:05:20 > 0:05:23having a cup of coffee or whatever.
0:05:23 > 0:05:27And it was that sort of selling that he was sort of part of the family
0:05:27 > 0:05:30and he came every few months.
0:05:30 > 0:05:34Carr even brought presents for the couple's children
0:05:34 > 0:05:37and over the next decade he became a trusted friend.
0:05:37 > 0:05:41So, in 2005, when he moved to a new company, they stuck with him
0:05:41 > 0:05:45and he soon told them it was time for new copiers.
0:05:46 > 0:05:49"Those machines are getting old now.
0:05:49 > 0:05:52"The new firm's got lots of reasons to try
0:05:52 > 0:05:55"and get some new machinery in and show you what they can do.
0:05:55 > 0:06:01"I can provide not three but six machines at the same price.
0:06:01 > 0:06:03"That's because the machines are now much cheaper."
0:06:03 > 0:06:08He also told them he would cancel the existing leases
0:06:08 > 0:06:10and start new ones for them.
0:06:10 > 0:06:13He would then come with a wodge of lease agreements to sign.
0:06:14 > 0:06:16But unbeknown to Clifford and Elaine,
0:06:16 > 0:06:19Carr, who would earn thousands in commission
0:06:19 > 0:06:22for each new lease they signed, had a plan.
0:06:22 > 0:06:24Often, the scammer will suggest
0:06:24 > 0:06:26that we need to sign multiple agreements
0:06:26 > 0:06:29or we need to sign a blank agreement,
0:06:29 > 0:06:32because in case one finance company declines the finance,
0:06:32 > 0:06:34we can then go straight to another.
0:06:34 > 0:06:37And, sure enough, Carr began presenting the couple with
0:06:37 > 0:06:41a bewildering array of leases, exploiting their trust in him.
0:06:43 > 0:06:46We signed, and then he'd fill them in later
0:06:46 > 0:06:49with the name of the machine that was going to come.
0:06:49 > 0:06:51You were signing blank invoices?
0:06:51 > 0:06:53Yes, signing a blank leasing document,
0:06:53 > 0:06:56which he then filled in at his leisure.
0:06:56 > 0:07:00- Would you have done that for anybody else?- No.
0:07:00 > 0:07:03Certainly not anyone we hadn't known for that length of time.
0:07:03 > 0:07:05We wouldn't have bought a car in that way.
0:07:05 > 0:07:08We went along with it because we trusted him.
0:07:08 > 0:07:12Carr had Clifford and Elaine right where he wanted them
0:07:12 > 0:07:16and was now using their challenging home life to his advantage.
0:07:16 > 0:07:19As you are signing these lease agreements,
0:07:19 > 0:07:21how are things in the household?
0:07:21 > 0:07:23Very often only one of us was present.
0:07:23 > 0:07:28We were both assuming that the other had agreed the next thing
0:07:28 > 0:07:31without asking each other what was happening.
0:07:31 > 0:07:33The new photocopiers arrived,
0:07:33 > 0:07:37but it wasn't long before Carr was back in touch.
0:07:37 > 0:07:41He started saying, "Well, some of those machines aren't performing properly.
0:07:41 > 0:07:45"Let me take them out and put in a new one for you."
0:07:45 > 0:07:49And new machines meant new leases, often not just one.
0:07:49 > 0:07:52He was saying, "Well, I need three lots of signatures.
0:07:52 > 0:07:55"I'll go to this, this and this leasing company, see which one
0:07:55 > 0:07:58"will give me the best deal, and I'll tear up the rest for you."
0:07:58 > 0:08:02The couple still had the same number of machines,
0:08:02 > 0:08:05but they'd lost track of how many leases they'd signed
0:08:05 > 0:08:08and when they went through their accounts, they got a nasty shock.
0:08:08 > 0:08:15We calculated it was at least 68,000 that was going out on leases.
0:08:15 > 0:08:18This was almost twice what they'd been paying before.
0:08:18 > 0:08:21Unsure what was going on, the couple asked Carr
0:08:21 > 0:08:24if perhaps the old leases were still active.
0:08:25 > 0:08:28We started asking him why the previous leases weren't cancelled,
0:08:28 > 0:08:32and he kept assuring us that they had been cancelled
0:08:32 > 0:08:35and he would go straight back to the office and sort it out.
0:08:35 > 0:08:38The con man will use a variety of different tactics,
0:08:38 > 0:08:41all designed just to put you off the scent.
0:08:41 > 0:08:44He will say, "It's probably a mistake, I'll come back to you.
0:08:44 > 0:08:47"I'll find out what's gone wrong. We'll sort it out, don't worry."
0:08:47 > 0:08:50The silver-tongued Carr then came back to the couple
0:08:50 > 0:08:52and managed to persuade them that, in fact,
0:08:52 > 0:08:54they WERE paying the right amount.
0:08:54 > 0:08:57He'd give a very quick explanation
0:08:57 > 0:09:02and write it all down and somehow come to the right figure.
0:09:02 > 0:09:04And we'd say, "Oh, yeah, all right."
0:09:04 > 0:09:07The simple fact was that Clifford and Elaine couldn't afford
0:09:07 > 0:09:11to spend 68,000 a year on photocopiers!
0:09:11 > 0:09:13We were finding ourselves in debt.
0:09:13 > 0:09:17We'd borrowed from the family to try and keep up with these payments.
0:09:17 > 0:09:19We'd used all our savings.
0:09:19 > 0:09:22But Carr had the solution to their problem.
0:09:22 > 0:09:25He suggested they cancel all their existing agreements
0:09:25 > 0:09:27and replace them with one large loan.
0:09:29 > 0:09:30We would do anything
0:09:30 > 0:09:37to get back to a reasonable level of expenditure on photocopiers.
0:09:37 > 0:09:42He said, "If you take out this new big lease, we can cancel and pay off
0:09:42 > 0:09:47"everything else and you'll have one single monthly payment to pay out."
0:09:47 > 0:09:50- This is like a consolidation.- It's like a consolidating loan, basically.
0:09:50 > 0:09:53This new loan would have to be secured
0:09:53 > 0:09:55against a second property that the couple owned.
0:09:55 > 0:09:58Thinking that this would reduce their monthly payments,
0:09:58 > 0:10:02they went ahead. At that point, things spiralled out of control.
0:10:02 > 0:10:05The new loan cost far more than promised
0:10:05 > 0:10:09and, incredibly, the old leases still hadn't been cancelled.
0:10:09 > 0:10:11He's responsible for this.
0:10:11 > 0:10:14You could take it to his door and say, "What's happened?
0:10:14 > 0:10:16"Why are we paying so much more?"
0:10:16 > 0:10:20We kept saying, "Well, can you bring all the paperwork you've got
0:10:20 > 0:10:24"so that we can see where this has apparently gone wrong?"
0:10:24 > 0:10:28He kept promising that he would, and every time he came,
0:10:28 > 0:10:31"Oh, I've left that, I haven't had time to get that."
0:10:31 > 0:10:34There must be a fight going on in your mind at this stage,
0:10:34 > 0:10:35because this guy has been your friend.
0:10:35 > 0:10:39- Yeah.- Really, that's what that's what he is. He's a friend for 15 years,
0:10:39 > 0:10:43and your suspicions at this stage must have been huge.
0:10:43 > 0:10:47We were worried to death about it at that stage.
0:10:47 > 0:10:50Once again, it was Carr who appeared to come to the rescue.
0:10:51 > 0:10:55He was trying to get over it by giving us moderate amounts
0:10:55 > 0:11:00of money in relationship to that total, from the firm.
0:11:00 > 0:11:04One way in which the scammer will just buy himself a little bit
0:11:04 > 0:11:07more time or appease the victim is by making small refunds
0:11:07 > 0:11:10so it looks like he's got that credibility.
0:11:10 > 0:11:14It looks like he's made a call to a business, the leasing company,
0:11:14 > 0:11:18and they've refunded money back, and so that alleviates that suspicion.
0:11:18 > 0:11:21By refunding the couple some of their money
0:11:21 > 0:11:24Carr cleverly convinced them he was on their side.
0:11:25 > 0:11:29So, you were thinking, "Well, if money's coming back in the right direction,
0:11:29 > 0:11:31- "there can't be anything wrong." - Yes.
0:11:32 > 0:11:34The sums coming back weren't nearly enough
0:11:34 > 0:11:36to ease the couple's financial woes.
0:11:36 > 0:11:38The monthly payments on their loans
0:11:38 > 0:11:40were running into the tens of thousands
0:11:40 > 0:11:42and they were in real trouble.
0:11:42 > 0:11:45In desperation, they turned to the one person they thought could help -
0:11:45 > 0:11:46Gary Carr.
0:11:48 > 0:11:50He arranged a second consolidation loan for them,
0:11:50 > 0:11:53and this time it was secured against their family home.
0:11:58 > 0:12:00We still believed him.
0:12:00 > 0:12:02We thought, "Well, if he's cancelling everything else out,
0:12:02 > 0:12:06"at least we've got a property to live in," so we signed up.
0:12:06 > 0:12:08This was the final solution.
0:12:08 > 0:12:11That's happened a number of times, though, through the process.
0:12:11 > 0:12:17- Yes, and we just kept accepting it. - We had no idea where else to go.
0:12:17 > 0:12:22After we'd all signed, we thought, "This isn't right."
0:12:23 > 0:12:25It wasn't until then.
0:12:25 > 0:12:28I think it's very difficult to keep this sort of a scam
0:12:28 > 0:12:31going on for too long, because, ultimately,
0:12:31 > 0:12:34you are putting an individual under a lot of financial stress.
0:12:34 > 0:12:36It's not going to be too long before you sit back and think,
0:12:36 > 0:12:39"Well, OK, I've had enough of the excuses.
0:12:39 > 0:12:40"What's really happening here?
0:12:40 > 0:12:43"It's really time to call in some help to investigate."
0:12:43 > 0:12:46Clifford and Elaine turned to a family friend
0:12:46 > 0:12:49who helped them make sense of what had been going on.
0:12:49 > 0:12:54So once you saw the paperwork, what was the clear picture?
0:12:54 > 0:13:02The clear picture was our property was in hock and we had paid out
0:13:02 > 0:13:06enormous sums and were doomed to do so for the next five years.
0:13:06 > 0:13:11- Can you put a figure on what you've lost?- We owed 1.4 million.
0:13:14 > 0:13:16- That's just incredible.- Yeah.
0:13:18 > 0:13:21Gary Carr had taken out 40 separate lease agreements
0:13:21 > 0:13:23in the couple's names
0:13:23 > 0:13:25and many were for photocopiers they never even saw.
0:13:27 > 0:13:30He pocketed £400,000 in commission.
0:13:31 > 0:13:34And because Clifford and Elaine operated as a partnership,
0:13:34 > 0:13:35not a limited company,
0:13:35 > 0:13:38they were personally liable for the seven-figure debt.
0:13:40 > 0:13:44They had no choice but to declare themselves bankrupt
0:13:44 > 0:13:48and accept that they had lost everything they'd ever worked for.
0:13:51 > 0:13:54We probably will have to work until we drop.
0:13:54 > 0:13:58We have to sort out whether we can continue to live here.
0:13:58 > 0:14:02I think we probably both try not to think about it and just get on.
0:14:05 > 0:14:07There is some small comfort for Clifford and Elaine.
0:14:07 > 0:14:11After a police investigation, Carr held up his hands
0:14:11 > 0:14:13and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud.
0:14:15 > 0:14:18Apart from one accomplice, it seems he operated the scam alone
0:14:18 > 0:14:20and neither the photocopier manufacturers
0:14:20 > 0:14:24nor the leasing firms were in any way involved.
0:14:24 > 0:14:26Clifford and Elaine attended court
0:14:26 > 0:14:30and saw Carr sentenced to four years and eight months in jail.
0:14:33 > 0:14:36In terms of your feelings about him,
0:14:36 > 0:14:39could you make sense of those at all?
0:14:40 > 0:14:46No... I know his behaviour was totally despicable.
0:14:46 > 0:14:51I, um... I even felt myself feeling sorry for him.
0:14:51 > 0:14:56That just speaks volumes about the strength of that relationship
0:14:56 > 0:14:59and how much it had influenced you during that time,
0:14:59 > 0:15:04and even when someone has let you down as badly -
0:15:04 > 0:15:08and he's not let you down, he's deceived you wholesale
0:15:08 > 0:15:11and put you in the situation that you are now,
0:15:11 > 0:15:13there's still a little bit of a bond there.
0:15:13 > 0:15:15Yes, I think there probably is.
0:15:18 > 0:15:20Staggering.
0:15:20 > 0:15:22I've never heard of another scam
0:15:22 > 0:15:24that's taken 20 years to come to fruition.
0:15:24 > 0:15:29Two decades during which they formed such a strong bond with
0:15:29 > 0:15:31the salesman that when they got suspicious,
0:15:31 > 0:15:35Elaine and Clifford turned to him to find the answers.
0:15:39 > 0:15:44Part of being a con man is pretending to be somebody else.
0:15:44 > 0:15:46That can be very simple. You just change your name.
0:15:46 > 0:15:50But there are those fraudsters that take it to another level,
0:15:50 > 0:15:53and the stories they tell about themselves
0:15:53 > 0:15:54are compelling works of fiction.
0:15:57 > 0:15:59And when it comes to tall tales,
0:15:59 > 0:16:02Winchester woman Tina Roberts takes some beating.
0:16:03 > 0:16:05She posed as a physiotherapist and nutritionist
0:16:05 > 0:16:09in scams that earned her over £1 million.
0:16:10 > 0:16:13Most people we spoke to entered into her trust.
0:16:13 > 0:16:17She was fairly personable and approachable
0:16:17 > 0:16:21and it made the scam that much easier for her.
0:16:21 > 0:16:24After receiving a string of complaints about Roberts,
0:16:24 > 0:16:27police uncovered a catalogue of crime,
0:16:27 > 0:16:31ranging from mortgage fraud to stealing people's card details.
0:16:31 > 0:16:33There was one particular individual
0:16:33 > 0:16:38where she managed to obtain from him in the region of £294,000.
0:16:39 > 0:16:42That individual was businessman James.
0:16:42 > 0:16:45It's not his real name, but he's been so affected by what's happened,
0:16:45 > 0:16:47he's asked us to conceal his identity.
0:16:49 > 0:16:52James first met Tina Roberts a decade ago when he developed
0:16:52 > 0:16:55a back problem and was advised to see a physiotherapist.
0:16:57 > 0:17:01Tina was a professional I always felt was very good. She got results.
0:17:01 > 0:17:03She did seem to have a good knowledge.
0:17:04 > 0:17:07So good, in fact, that Roberts told James
0:17:07 > 0:17:10she'd been employed as a physio to the England rugby team.
0:17:11 > 0:17:14Tina's claims that she was working with the international rugby team
0:17:14 > 0:17:17certainly gave you an air of confidence that you were
0:17:17 > 0:17:20working with somebody who was treating top athletes, and you felt
0:17:20 > 0:17:24that if she was treating them, that actually then she must be good for me.
0:17:24 > 0:17:26James went to Roberts on a regular basis
0:17:26 > 0:17:28and, over time, they got to know each other.
0:17:30 > 0:17:32She was bubbly, she was always engaging.
0:17:32 > 0:17:35She wanted to talk to people. She wanted to find out about you.
0:17:35 > 0:17:39She would tell you about her life and what was going on and what she
0:17:39 > 0:17:43was doing in the business, so you became embroiled in a friendship.
0:17:44 > 0:17:48And Roberts' business appeared to be going from strength to strength.
0:17:48 > 0:17:52She told James she'd won a contract to provide nutritional supplements
0:17:52 > 0:17:54to the British cycling team.
0:17:54 > 0:17:58And, flushed with success, she began renovating her offices.
0:17:58 > 0:18:00But then, out of the blue,
0:18:00 > 0:18:02she suddenly turned to James in need of help.
0:18:04 > 0:18:07She called me in tears, saying that the builders were refusing
0:18:07 > 0:18:09to work unless she paid them,
0:18:09 > 0:18:12and she couldn't do that because she had put all her money into stock
0:18:12 > 0:18:14for the nutritional side of things,
0:18:14 > 0:18:16and was there anything I could do to help?
0:18:16 > 0:18:18So yes, I transferred her some money that night
0:18:18 > 0:18:20to help her solve that cash flow issue.
0:18:22 > 0:18:25It was to be the first of many loans.
0:18:25 > 0:18:29Over a five-month period James lent Roberts the best part of £20,000,
0:18:29 > 0:18:32thinking he was using his business knowledge to help a friend.
0:18:32 > 0:18:36When you know a little bit about these things, it's very plausible
0:18:36 > 0:18:39that a growing business would struggle from cash flow issues.
0:18:40 > 0:18:43But then the requests for money grew significantly larger.
0:18:43 > 0:18:47At this stage, she was asking for amounts
0:18:47 > 0:18:50between £10,000 and £20,000 at a time, so fairly substantial.
0:18:50 > 0:18:56Before lending that kind of money, James needed to see some paperwork.
0:18:56 > 0:18:58She produced orders from the clients.
0:18:58 > 0:19:01She produced delivery notices from the suppliers.
0:19:01 > 0:19:05She produced lists of clients and amounts and values,
0:19:05 > 0:19:08so that you'd sit and look at it and say,
0:19:08 > 0:19:12anyone knowing this would say this looks like a very proper business.
0:19:14 > 0:19:18Convinced by what he saw, James handed over more of his own cash.
0:19:18 > 0:19:21Unbeknown to him, it was around this time
0:19:21 > 0:19:26that Hampshire Police began receiving complaints about Roberts.
0:19:26 > 0:19:27Several of her clients had come forward
0:19:27 > 0:19:32saying she was taking unauthorised payments from their credit and debit cards.
0:19:32 > 0:19:34Steve Murden led the investigation.
0:19:36 > 0:19:40Tina was saying on occasions, "My card machine is not working
0:19:40 > 0:19:41"so I can't take the money.
0:19:41 > 0:19:45"Just leave me your details and I'll take it out later on."
0:19:45 > 0:19:49There are no prizes for guessing what happened next.
0:19:49 > 0:19:52Once she'd recorded the details, she was able to put it through
0:19:52 > 0:19:55her machine and debit amounts to which she wasn't entitled.
0:19:55 > 0:19:58Bank records confirmed the fraud,
0:19:58 > 0:20:02and police now began looking at Tina Roberts very closely indeed,
0:20:02 > 0:20:04starting with her claims
0:20:04 > 0:20:07that she was physio to the England rugby team.
0:20:07 > 0:20:12As far as the England rugby team were concerned, we contacted England RFU.
0:20:12 > 0:20:13They'd never heard of her,
0:20:13 > 0:20:18so we knew at an early stage that her claims were false.
0:20:18 > 0:20:22She'd also lied about her involvement with the British cycling team,
0:20:22 > 0:20:25but the biggest lie of all was about to come.
0:20:25 > 0:20:27Astonishingly, police discovered that Tina Roberts
0:20:27 > 0:20:30wasn't even a qualified physiotherapist.
0:20:31 > 0:20:33We were extremely concerned,
0:20:33 > 0:20:37because if she was treating patients for a specific injury,
0:20:37 > 0:20:42then she was more likely to do more harm than good, and obviously,
0:20:42 > 0:20:46that would have had perhaps an impact on that individual's health.
0:20:46 > 0:20:50Roberts was arrested and all of her documents were seized.
0:20:50 > 0:20:53Once we had access to her bank accounts,
0:20:53 > 0:20:58we saw that she was heavily involved with financial institutions
0:20:58 > 0:21:01as far as mortgages or loans were concerned.
0:21:01 > 0:21:04Roberts had made a series of fraudulent loan applications,
0:21:04 > 0:21:08again claiming she was working with the England rugby squad.
0:21:08 > 0:21:13Once we started finding Tina had deceived financial institutions,
0:21:13 > 0:21:16it went from a fairly small investigation
0:21:16 > 0:21:19to a much larger scale investigation.
0:21:19 > 0:21:22But despite the growing evidence against her,
0:21:22 > 0:21:25Roberts protested her innocence.
0:21:25 > 0:21:29Throughout interviews, she maintained that she'd never ever told anyone
0:21:29 > 0:21:31that she was a qualified physiotherapist.
0:21:31 > 0:21:36One of the documents that was put to her in interview was, in fact,
0:21:36 > 0:21:40her marriage certificate, which, when she was asked to comment on it,
0:21:40 > 0:21:45she declined, but it clearly showed her occupation
0:21:45 > 0:21:48on her marriage certificate as a physiotherapist.
0:21:50 > 0:21:55In January 2010, Roberts was charged with fraud and released on bail.
0:21:55 > 0:21:59But at this stage, police weren't aware of innocent businessman James
0:21:59 > 0:22:03who'd loaned Roberts almost £150,000
0:22:03 > 0:22:06and wanted to know when he was going to be repaid.
0:22:06 > 0:22:08When I really questioned Tina and said,
0:22:08 > 0:22:11"When am I going to get some of this money back?"
0:22:11 > 0:22:14she told me that she'd had issues with her bank where monies had
0:22:14 > 0:22:17been paid in by British Cycling and by British Rugby,
0:22:17 > 0:22:20and that a bank employee had scammed her.
0:22:20 > 0:22:23Roberts also confessed to James about her arrest.
0:22:23 > 0:22:27She had been wrongly accused, in her opinion, by the police,
0:22:27 > 0:22:31because of a personal vendetta by someone in the police,
0:22:31 > 0:22:37and that she had been questioned, but never charged for any offences.
0:22:37 > 0:22:40And incredibly, she set about using it to her advantage.
0:22:40 > 0:22:43She showed me bank statements with that money coming in
0:22:43 > 0:22:47and the total sum of money in her bank and said
0:22:47 > 0:22:50she couldn't get access to it because the police had frozen that.
0:22:50 > 0:22:52But that was all due to stop very soon.
0:22:52 > 0:22:55James believed Tina was a friend and wanted to help.
0:22:55 > 0:23:01Over the next five months, he lent Roberts a further £150,000,
0:23:01 > 0:23:03and only became suspicious
0:23:03 > 0:23:06when he discussed the situation with friends.
0:23:06 > 0:23:09I found through friends that they'd also lent her money
0:23:09 > 0:23:10at the same period of time.
0:23:10 > 0:23:14The story she was using to them was that she didn't want to ask me
0:23:14 > 0:23:17for any more money because I'd done so much for her.
0:23:17 > 0:23:20It was at that point in time that I realised, actually,
0:23:20 > 0:23:22this wasn't all quite right.
0:23:22 > 0:23:27Now seriously concerned, James began gathering his own evidence.
0:23:27 > 0:23:30I started to record our conversations.
0:23:30 > 0:23:32I looked at some of the details around some of the bank statements
0:23:32 > 0:23:35and other things so that when I went to the police
0:23:35 > 0:23:38that they had a solid case against her.
0:23:38 > 0:23:41When James finally went to the police, he discovered that
0:23:41 > 0:23:43he was one of scores
0:23:43 > 0:23:46who'd been drawn into Tina Roberts' web of lies.
0:23:46 > 0:23:49But the evidence he'd gathered was crucial for the police.
0:23:50 > 0:23:54One of the documents that he was provided with by Tina was, in fact,
0:23:54 > 0:24:01a false Lloyds TSB bank statement which showed that she had
0:24:01 > 0:24:05a credit of just over £1.4 million.
0:24:05 > 0:24:07James's evidence also proved
0:24:07 > 0:24:11that Roberts had continued her fraud whilst on police bail.
0:24:11 > 0:24:16Shown total disregard for the judicial process, and as a result
0:24:16 > 0:24:22of that, she was arrested and we had grounds for remanding her in custody,
0:24:22 > 0:24:26because we suspected and believed that she would continue to reoffend.
0:24:26 > 0:24:31Roberts was put on remand and, in February 2011,
0:24:31 > 0:24:34she pleaded guilty to 12 counts of fraud -
0:24:34 > 0:24:36one count of obtaining property by deception,
0:24:36 > 0:24:40and one count of obtaining financial advantage by deception.
0:24:40 > 0:24:43She was sentenced to seven years in jail,
0:24:43 > 0:24:45which was later reduced to six on appeal.
0:24:46 > 0:24:49When she was finally sentenced,
0:24:49 > 0:24:55part of her mitigation was that she had some form of lying disorder.
0:24:56 > 0:25:00I remember the judge remarked to the defence counsel,
0:25:00 > 0:25:03"How do we know she's not lying?"
0:25:03 > 0:25:07With Roberts behind bars, people she'd targeted like James
0:25:07 > 0:25:10were left to try and come to terms with what had happened.
0:25:10 > 0:25:14When you finally realise that the person you've known for ten years
0:25:14 > 0:25:18is a complete fantasist and that everything she said to you
0:25:18 > 0:25:21was made up, you do question your sanity almost.
0:25:21 > 0:25:24You sort of look at it and think, "Was this just me?"
0:25:26 > 0:25:30For more information about the scams featured in the series, go to -
0:25:42 > 0:25:44Now, before we go there's just time to tell you about
0:25:44 > 0:25:47some of the latest scams out there right now.
0:25:50 > 0:25:53I've come to meet an expert from the Financial Services Authority
0:25:53 > 0:25:56to get the low-down on what you should be looking out for.
0:25:58 > 0:26:01And today we're looking at a new kind of boiler-room scam.
0:26:07 > 0:26:11Boiler rooms are normally about buying fake or worthless shares,
0:26:11 > 0:26:15but here, they phone you up and offer to buy shares off you.
0:26:15 > 0:26:18They're offering you a lot of money, because they're acting
0:26:18 > 0:26:21for a client who wants to make a secret takeover bid
0:26:21 > 0:26:24and they're willing to pay a little bit more than the market price.
0:26:24 > 0:26:28They're offering you money. How do you end up paying them?
0:26:28 > 0:26:30They say that to secure that deal,
0:26:30 > 0:26:33you just need to pay some up-front taxes
0:26:33 > 0:26:36and some up-front fees, so you hand over a few thousand pounds
0:26:36 > 0:26:40to secure the deal, and then you'll never hear from them again.
0:26:40 > 0:26:44If any firm cold-calls you and offers to buy or sell shares,
0:26:44 > 0:26:47you should be very wary indeed.
0:26:47 > 0:26:50There are plenty of legitimate and reputable brokers out there,
0:26:50 > 0:26:52so make sure you do plenty of research
0:26:52 > 0:26:54before handing over any cash.
0:26:55 > 0:26:59Fraudsters will forever be coming up with new ways to get you
0:26:59 > 0:27:02to part with your cash, but armed with a little bit of knowledge,
0:27:02 > 0:27:05you could be one step ahead of them.
0:27:05 > 0:27:07Stay safe. I'll see you next time.
0:27:26 > 0:27:30Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd