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A conman in Britain who lived a millionaire lifestyle by fraudulently claiming refunds for stolen DIY goods was jailed for two years and four months yesterday.
Kevin Castle, 43, known to police as the "millionaire shoplifter", used a simple but effective fraud to extract hundreds of
thousands of pounds from stores across the country.
With his designer clothes, luxury cars and rooms in high-class hotels, Castle passed himself off as a successful property developer or stockbroker. But everything about him was phoney, even his height.
Castle measures only 5ft 5in tall, but wore blocks in his shoes to make himself look taller.
He made his money by calling in at B&Q and Homebase DIY stores across the North of England, pretending to be an electrician, engineer, alarm fitter or property developer, seeking a refund on goods bought in error.
In fact, the goods were stolen and the receipts were fake. Police believe that this ruse was making him between £500 and £1,000 ($1350 and $2700) a day from as far back as 2004.
It was enough to fund a 28-day stay at Claridge's, which cost £15,000, and to pay £1,000 a week for a flat he rented in Knightsbridge for 40 weeks.
Castle also dined at Gordon Ramsay's restaurants in London, and spent £40,000 on luxury hired cars, including a Porsche Cayenne.
At Preston Crown Court yesterday he was sentenced to two years and four months in prison after pleading guilty to money laundering and 11 counts of fraud, with 76 other offences taken into consideration.
He had 17 previous convictions for 60 offences. At an earlier hearing, Castle was ordered to declare his assets ahead of a "profits-of-crime" hearing in December.
He is still under investigation by Nottinghamshire police for other allegations of deception. In 2004, Castle, from Nottingham, was given a community rehabilitation order after being convicted of 100 shoplifting offences at B&Q stores in the North-west.
Also in 2004 his ex-girlfriend, Elaine Rogers, 47, was given a 12-month suspended sentence for money laundering.
Her counsel said she had been used by Castle, who then dumped her for another woman. He was arrested again on suspicion of money laundering in April 2006, and bailed.
Three months later, he was arrested in Altrincham after store staff became suspicious of his story. Castle was bailed again, and went on the run. He was finally arrested in Nottingham last February.
- INDEPENDENT