‘Bank of terror’ fraud gang scammed World War Two hero, 93, out of £113k life savings and funnelled it to ISIS
Kenneth Whitaker said he felt 'dumb and stupid' after he lost his life savings in the cruel scam
A WORLD War Two veteran was duped out of £113,000 by a gang of fraudsters who tricked pensioners to support Isis terrorists in Syria, a court heard.
Kenneth Whitaker, 93, who fought at the Battle of Arnhem, said he felt "dumb and stupid" after he lost his life savings in the cruel scam.
The gang targeted at least 18 victims from Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Bedfordshire, London and Kent, netting more than £900,000 in the so-called "bank of terror" fraud.
The crooks claimed to be law enforcement officials and persuaded pensioners to transfer money for "safekeeping" as they had detected criminals trying to steal from their accounts.
Victims were urged to ring their banks to move the money to new accounts - but when they hung up and dialled they were still connected to the fraud gang.
The fraudsters urged the pensioners not to tell anyone else or it would jeopardise the police investigation.
Colin Cromwell, 50, was not involved in the original fraud, but was recruited to launder £20,000 of Mr Whitaker's cash through his bank account.
He admitted converting criminal property between January and February 2015, but claimed he didn't hand a penny back to the fraudsters.
Mark Gatley, for Cromwell said: "He had second thoughts and cancelled the card they had given him and requested a new card.
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"When the money eventually cleared he with drew it all and spent it - he spent a lot of it on drugs, but also some of it on clothes for him and his partner, and on essentials for the baby she was expecting at the time."
Cromwell appeared at the Old Bailey by video link and is due back in court on February 1 to learn whether his plea will be accepted by the prosecution.
Following the fraud, Mr Whitaker said the fraud had robbed him of his independence.
In a victim impact statement, he said: "I never used to feel my age or how old I am, but I do now.
"I don't feel as confident, but most of all I feel like such an idiot for not picking it up earlier.
"The worst thing is I thought I was helping.
"Throughout my time in the Army and business I've tried to do the right thing, I thought I was trying to help police officers catch criminals.
"Throughout my time in the world I was never afraid of anything, perhaps that's what made me a target.
"Now I just feel dumb and stupid for having fallen for it."
The fraud was smashed by officers from the Met's Counter Terrorism Command investigating cash being funnelled from Britain to Syria to fund Isis.
In May last year nine fraudsters - including former X Factor contestant Nathan Fagan-Gayle - were jailed for a total of more than 35 years for a mixture of fraud and money laundering offences.
Fagan-Gayle was jailed for 20 months for his role in laundering the cash, although he claimed he thought the money was pre-payment for upcoming gigs in Dubai.
Sakaria Aden, 22, was jailed for six years and six months, Yasser Abukar, 24, was jailed for six years, while Makhzumi Abukar, 28, was jailed for seven years and four months, Achmed Ahmed, 23, was jailed for four years and two months, Fahim Islam, 21, was jailed for six years and three months, while Mohamed Dahir was jailed for two years and nine months.
Anrul Islam, 24, was jailed for 16 months, while 30-year-old Warsame Sheik was jailed for nine months.
Cromwell, of Islington, insists he did not hand over any of the money he received into his bank account to the fraudsters.
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