26-05-2025
Heartless Pudsey Bear conmen who pilfered over £500,000 of money people thought was for charity are ordered to pay £100,000 to the good causes
Heartless conmen who dressed up as Pudsey Bear to pilfer more than £500,000 from kindhearted members of the public have been ordered to pay back £100,000.
The gang was led by David Levi who would wear the beloved Children In Need's yellow bear costume outside supermarkets to con shoppers into making phony donations.
He used his ill-gotten gains to fund a life of luxury by buying expensive cars and holidays.
He appeared at Preston Crown Court last year where he was jailed for five years after admitting to fraud and money laundering.
Now the 49-year-old and fellow bogus collector Stephen Chesterman, 64, have been told to pay back some of the cash or face more time behind bars.
The gang collected for charities including Great Ormond Street Hospital, Children in Need and Comic Relief.
Levi, from Lytham St Annes, Lancashire, has been ordered to pay back £4,438. If he doesn't pay back the money, the fraudster could face an extra three months in prison.
Fellow gang member Chesterman, from Benfleet, Essex, has been given three months to pay back £102,618.
If he doesn't, he could face an 18 months jail sentence on top of his previous 22 months in jail.
The money recovered will be paid to Children in Need, The Children's Society, Mind, and Great Ormond Street Hospital.
The fake charity collectors travelled across the country to solicit donations outside supermarkets, and would threaten to go to the media or report employees if they were challenged.
Prosecutors identified a total of approximately £500,000 in cash deposits which had been made in to the accounts of members of the group of seven.
Adrian Foster, Chief Crown Prosecutor of the CPS Proceeds of Crime Division, said: 'These men preyed on the good will of members of the public, who believed their money was going to help people.
'Instead, the money was stolen to fund their own lifestyles.
'We are pleased that the money obtained by fraud is finally being given to the deserved charities, and the defendants have not benefitted from their ill-gotten gains.'
In emails to the BBC, following his conviction, the Pudsey Bear scammer Levi said he enjoys raising money for good causes and 'fully intends' to fundraise again in the future.
Levi even produced fake badges and marketing material to make his scam appear legitimate. When he was caught, he claimed he had made his wealth through escorting, and was lucky at casinos and bookies.
'I can make a grand a week', he told officers upon his arrest.
In reality, the court heard he targeted supermarkets to make 'bucket collections' which had not been authorised.
Sentencing Levi last year, Judge Andrew Jeffries KC said less than 10 per cent of the £500,000 traced through the conman's bank accounts made its way to the charities it was intended to help.
He said Levi and his gang 'preyed upon the public's generosity - and in many cases, private grief.'
'The British public is always ready to give to a good cause and especially to any charity which helps children who are sick, those with cancer and Children in Need', he said. 'They give generously, even when many may not have much themselves.'
He vowed to ensure no other scammers could operate in the way Levi and his gang had by passing deterrent sentences. 'The words despicable and brazen have been used and I echo those here', he said.
'The court will endeavour to ensure that no further bogus collections are made for charity so that members of the public can give with confidence as they have in the past.'
The biggest loser was the BBC, whose Children In Need charity lost out on £47,000 donated by kind-hearted members of the public.
In an email exchange from behind bars, Levi denied being a scammer and claimed he and his six codefendents simply pocketed expenses for their fundraising activities - which 'ran into thousands.'
An audio recording shows Levi telling police he received much of his money from 'escorting' when he was really conning Brits out of thousands of pounds.
'I don't know where it's come from but it's not charity money,' he said. 'I was doing a bit of escorting as well at the time, which I wasn't going to bring up, which is very good money.'
When asked by police if he had records for his escorting, Levi said: 'Clients don't like [...] receipts. They like discretion.'
He added: 'Escorting, on the odd times that I did it, you can make a grand a week, sometimes two grand a week.'
To try to cover his tracks Levi would contact each charity, obtain a fundraising pack and use this to claim he was a genuine collector in case he was questioned by store staff or the police, with collections taking place all over the country.
Even when supermarket staff challenged the fraudsters about the bogus collections they were told they would lose their jobs or be reported to the national press.
Also involved in the scam were Howard Collins, 73, who helped organise collections and went out collecting. He introduced a number of people to GOSH and wrote letters claiming to be from the North of England Events Office - which did not exist.
William Ormand went out collecting, but the court heard that he was also involved in paying other collectors and appears to have assisted Levi. Martin Ebanks, 59, and Robert Roy Ferguson, 63, also collected for the conspiracy.
