Fraudster forged letter from Arab sheikh to con cash out of investors (From Echo)

Fraudster forged letter from Arab sheikh to con cash out of investors

8:21am Monday 6th July 2009

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A BOATBUILDER who forged a letter from an Arab sheikh to con investors out of hundreds of thousands of pounds, has been jailed for two years.

Don Ladell, 25, convinced investors they would get a return on multimillion-pound plans for a marina on the site of the former loading pier, off Eastern Esplanade, Southend.

He forged a letter from Sheikh Maktoum, ruler of Dubai, in which the sheikh appeared to be offering to invest £75million in the project.

The conman won the trust of local investor Laurence Hilsum, who gave him a total of about £323,000 towards the sham project. Michael Johnson, Mr Hilsum’s brother-in-law, chipped in a further £56,000.

At Basildon Crown Court ,Ladell admitted five counts of fraud, involving sums totalling £190,000. Ladell, of Grand Drive, Leigh, but formerly of Barbour Green, Wickford, also bought a £48,549 car from a Mercedes dealer in Southend, using a cheque which bounced.

He then produced a fake bank statement which appeared to show the cheque had cleared. When police searched his house they found logos and letterheads used to create bogus documents.

Judge Rupert Overbury said: “Your fraud was only successful because you developed a skill as a conman.”

He added: “It is unfortunate, because I have no doubt at all you had ambitions that all your ventures would be a success. Some were complete pipedreams, but others weren’t.”

Ladell’s lawyer, Phillip Matthews, said he genuinely wanted to build boats.

He added: “His ambition clearly outstripped his ability. There’s no question of him spending this money on high living. He’s not a drinker. He’s not a drug-taker."

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