Fake mortgage advisor sentenced

A man who posed as a mortgage advisor and defrauded four people out of more than £200,000 has been sentenced.

Adam Francis, of Rowan Rise in Barnton, appeared at Chester Crown Court on Friday 24th July, where he was sentenced to 25 months in prison, suspended for two years, and up to 20 days rehabilitation requirement.

The 48-year-old had previously pleaded guilty to four counts of fraud by false representation. A further count was ordered to lie on file.

Between February 2017 and August 2018, the four victims had each been seeking help for new mortgages and approached Francis after seeing his adverts in which he offered his services as the ‘Mortgage Man’.

Francis worked with a second defendant, a qualified accountant, who has since died.

Francis met all of the victims in person, purporting to be mortgage or financial adviser, with his associate working as the accountant. Between the pair, they convinced all of the victims that they were reputable professionals who were offering legitimate services.

They told the victims that in order to secure the deals, they needed to hand over mortgage deposits and various charges, and solicitors fees.

To help persuade the victims that the mortgages were legitimate, Francis engaged with a number of professionals, giving the complainants the impression he was carrying out the required work and starting off the mortgage process.

He also spoke with estate agents, made initial enquiries with legitimate mortgage advisers, and instructed solicitors, including paying initial fees, to help to obtain the relevant documentation and emails which to were then provided to the victims who believed that their money was safe and the conveyancing process was under way.

In reality, Francis and his associate had already stolen all the money.

The victims only became aware that they had been conned when they contacted the solicitors to check how their mortgages were progressing, only to be told that their mortgages had not progressed and there was no money held in any client account.

After discovering that they had been deceived, the victims reported the allegations to Cheshire Police and Francis was arrested. Between them, the four victims reported losses of just over £203,436.

Following his arrest, Francis answered no comment in relation to all of the fraud allegations. Despite his silence, he was later charged with four counts of fraud by false representation.

Following the sentencing, Detective Constable Catrin Phoenix, of the Economic Crime Unit at Cheshire police, said:

“Francis was a cunning and deceitful individual who convinced his victims into handing over more than £200,000, believing that he was a legitimate mortgage adviser and money was being used towards their mortgage.

“In reality, Francis had no financial qualifications, and he used the victim’s cash for his own personal gain.

“While we have been unable to recover any of the victim’s cash, I do hope that the fact Francis has now been held accountable for his actions will provide them with some closure.”

During the sentencing, His Honour Judge Everett described how Francis “took the victims for a ride,” and stated his actions were “totally shameful” and “a con from beginning to end” which caused significant distress to the victims.

Pictured - Adam Francis of Rowan Rise in Barnton.