4 days ago
Fraudster steals £64,000 from his own grandpa's life savings with fake job plot shortly after death of his wife
A FRAUDSTER has been jailed after conning his own grandfather out of his life savings.
Aiden Frier, 26, faked photos of himself out on jobs to convince his family he had a senior position with a water company.
Frier, from South Shields, convinced his own grandfather to hand over thousands of pounds for "courses" that never really existed.
Frier since admitted the fraud and was jailed for two years at Newcastle Crown Court.
His grandad, who had recently lost his wife, said his "world crumbled" after being persuaded by his sneaky grandson to hand over his life savings.
The court heard how Frier invented his fictitious job with Swiftwater Solutions in 2021.
He then went on to lie to his grandad and his mother about the job, creating fake bank statements and photographs of him "at work."
Frier then began to ask his grandad for urgent financial help who happily handed over the cash to help him progress in his career.
Frier's grandad believed the money would all be paid back.
The court heard that in 2024 Frier's scam "escalated" with him forging emails from Revolut bank to back up his claims about his fake job.
"Evil" Frier sat beside his grandad on one occasion and guided him through the process of applying for a £4,000 loan which was transferred straight to his grandson.
The court heard how Frier managed to pocket a massive £64,414 as a result of his scam.
AI scam-baiting GRANNY is taking dodgy calls so you don't have to - and wastes fraudsters' time by rambling about family
The pensioner said in an impact statements that his "world crumbled" when the truth was exposed.
He added: "I will never get over this.
"I will always be scared after this and can never trust him again.
"He needs to admit he has been evil by stealing from me. My life savings are gone."
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Frier's grandad has been left terrified that he will receive a bill he cant afford to pay.
The judge, Recorder Christopher Knox, said: "For three years and more you deceitfully stole what I understand to be your grandfather's entire life savings.
"Savings he had made in the course of a long hard working life and which he wanted to be able to use to ensure he was going to be able to have a reasonable retirement."
He went on to tell Frier that he had built a "fantasy life" and added: "You sent pictures to your mother pretending you were working.
"It seems you were in fact pretending, using material you borrowed or stole from your flat mate to show you were working for this particular company and you sent pictures pretending you were at sea."
Peter Sabiston, defending, said: "He is still a young man, he's completely isolated from his family, that is his own fault but it's an element of punishment that will be active long beyond any sentence imposed.
"He is genuinely sorry, he feels shame, remorse and sorrow."
Frier admitted fraud by false representation and was passed down a sentence of two and a half years.
How to protect yourself from fraud
USE the following tips to protect yourself from fraudsters.
Keep your social media accounts private – Think twice before you your share details – in particular your full date of birth, address and contacts details – all of this information can be useful to fraudsters.
Deactivate and delete old social media profiles – Keep track of your digital footprint. If a profile was created 10 years ago, there may be personal information currently available for a fraudster to use that you're are not aware of or you have forgotten about.
Password protect your devices – Keep passwords complex by picking three random words, such as roverducklemon and add or split them with symbols, numbers and capitals.
Install anti-virus software on your laptop and personal devices and keep it up to date – This will make it harder for fraudsters to access your data in the first place.
Take care on public Wi-Fi – Fraudsters can hack or mimic them. If you're using one, avoid accessing sensitive apps, such as mobile banking.
Think about your offline information too – Always redirect your post when you move home and make sure your letter or mailbox is secure.
