He ‘deliberately and repeatedly deceived and misled people who had befriended him into lending him money’
James Chambers has been jailed(Image: Hull Live)
A “greedy and manipulative confidence trickster” left a large number of people out of pocket and suffering a devastating sense of “betrayal” after a “sophisticated” long-running fraud totalling more than £365,000. The victims were “kind-hearted people who accepted at face value what he said” but, over many years, he “deliberately and repeatedly deceived and misled people who had befriended him”.
They discovered to their horror that it was “all a pack of lies” and that he had been “faking it all along” to them, Hull Crown Court heard. James Chambers, 48, admitted seven offences of fraud by false representation, including at Driffield in East Yorkshire, and Raithby, near Spilsby, in Lincolnshire, as well as at Malton and Harrogate in North Yorkshire.
David Hall, prosecuting, said that a bankruptcy petition was issued against Chambers at York County Court by a creditor on January 20, 2016. A bankruptcy order was made on March 14, 2016.
At the time, the known bankruptcy debts totalled £166,055 to eight creditors, two of them private people from whom Chambers borrowed money that was not repaid. Two additional creditors, also private people, later came to light.
The total bankruptcy debts were £180,584 owing to 10 creditors, £167,773 of it to private people. Usually, the restrictions resulting from a bankruptcy are lifted after one year. The discharge can, however, be suspended.
“In the case of Chambers, his discharge was suspended indefinitely further to an application by the Insolvency Service due to lack of cooperation and failure to deliver up certain assets,” said Mr Hall. “Chambers has remained an undischarged bankrupt to date, meaning the restrictions of bankruptcy have continued to apply to him.
“The history of this case reveals that the defendant is a greedy and manipulative confidence trickster, who deliberately and repeatedly deceived and misled people who had befriended him into lending him money by pretending that he was the heir to a fortune.
“It is important for the court to remember in cases like this that the damage to the victims is not just the financial loss but also ongoing feelings of betrayal, disloyalty, lies and deliberate, premeditated abuse of trust.” A number of victims were conned out of money –
● A man who had been a friend since 1999 lost £125,000 on June 1, 2019 after Chambers claimed that he needed to pay lawyers to gain access to an inheritance. None of the money was repaid. He never disclosed that he was a bankrupt.
● Two men lost £94,850 between September 1, 2017 and May 17, 2024 after Chambers told them about numerous debts that he had been left with. They paid £22,000 off for him. He led them to believe that he had been left a £1.4m life assurance policy and that he was the sole beneficiary of a will. Chambers fraudulently used a bank card and borrowed money.
● A woman lost £68,000 between September 1, 2017 and May 17, 2024 when Chambers asked her for loans after leading her to believe that he was a successful business owner. He claimed that his money was tied up in other ventures.
● A woman lost £34,000 between January 1, 2009 and May 17, 2024 after he became friends with her. She regularly loaned him money but he did not tell her about his bankruptcy.
● A man lost £32,988 between January 1, 2021 and May 17, 2024 after becoming friends with Chambers through Facebook. Chambers began asking for money, saying that he could not use bank cards relating to a trust fund.
● A woman lost £6,700 between September 1, 2017 and May 17, 2024 after Chambers told her that he would benefit from a trust fund worth millions of pounds. She loaned him money to “tide him over” after he claimed that there were difficulties with frozen funds.
● A woman lost £3,600 between September 1, 2017 and May 17, 2024 after she trusted him and became a friend. He claimed that the £3,600 would be repaid within three weeks but he never did so.
The total value of the frauds was £365,139 and they had “high victim impact” and were sophisticated. They were sustained over a long period of time.
There was a large number of victims and it was deliberate targeting of vulnerable victims. Chambers had a previous conviction on March 12 this year for theft from an employer, when he was fined £200 at North Yorkshire Magistrates’ Court.
Glenn Parsons, mitigating, said that it was a “complex tale” and “sophisticated” offending but Chambers pleaded guilty after early denials. “It was over a significant period and there were seven victims,” said Mr Parsons.
“It was deliberate targeting of victims on the basis of vulnerability. He is quite properly described as a confidence trickster.
“It was a range of people and there was no real common denominator other than that they were prepared to be kind and to listen to him. He predated upon them. He had a stock-in-trade.
“They were just kind-hearted people who accepted at face value what he said. Some of them extended a very Christian nature to him and they will have felt betrayal and felt angry, only to find out that it was all a pack of lies.”
The victims found out that Chambers was “faking it all along” to them. “Very considerable amounts of money were involved,” said Mr Parsons. Devastation, distress and upset had been caused to the victims. “This will have, no doubt, affected their finances considerably,” said Mr Parsons.
“He was prepared, unlike many in this position, to come clean in the Crown Court. It’s plain that this conduct has been going on for many, many years.”
Chambers was “presentable, plausible, educated and affable” and it was perhaps easy to see how people were taken in by him and preyed upon. “To prison he must go and he will find it very difficult in there,” said Mr Parsons.
Recorder Gordon Stables told Chambers: “This was not a momentary or short-lived offence. It was a course of conduct pursued repeatedly, deliberately and persistently over a lengthy period.
“Time and again, you persuaded people to loan you money. Time and again, you assured them that substantial funds would soon become available. Those assurances were all lies.”
The victims were caused damage that could not just be “measured in pounds and pence”. They believed the promises of Chambers and that the money he borrowed would be repaid.
The financial loss was considerable but the “personal betrayal was greater still” because their trust had been abused by a person who they believed was honest. The fraud involved considerable planning.
Chambers created false documents and communications to give the falsehoods an appearance of truth. “The activity was conducted over a sustained period,” said Recorder Stables. “There were a large number of victims.”
Chambers, of St John’s View, Boston Spa, near Wetherby, who had been on bail, was jailed for four-and-a-half years.
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