Mark Acklom
Born
Mark Richard George Acklom

1973 (age 50–51)
Lambeth, London, England
EducationEastbourne College
Known forBeing a conman and fraudster
SpouseMaria Yolanda Ros Rodriguez
Children2

Mark Richard George Acklom[1][2][3] (born 1973) is an English conman and fraudster who was on Britain's National Crime Agency's list of 10 most-wanted fugitives. His criminal career began at the age of 16 and he has been imprisoned five times in Spain since 1999. He was wanted by Avon & Somerset Police on suspicion of fraud by false representation.

Early life

Mark Acklom was born in Lambeth in London in 1973,[4] the oldest of four children. He was educated at Eastbourne College. He was first jailed in 1991 when he was sentenced to four years in a young offender institution for stealing his father's American Express card and posing as a stockbroker to commit a £1 million fraud that included obtaining a £446,168 mortgage on a house and hiring private jets.[5][6][7] He was described by the judge as "utterly selfish and completely ruthless".[6] His parents, who informed the police of their son's activities, moved to rented accommodation and sold their house in Bromley to raise money to help pay off his debts.[8] The events were the subject of an episode of Crime Limited in August 1993.[9]

Career

Acklom has been imprisoned five times in Spain. He was wanted by Avon & Somerset Police on suspicion of fraud by false representation after he started a romantic relationship with a woman in 2012, telling her he was Mark Conway, a rich Swiss banker and MI6 agent. The woman lent him a total of £850,000 which has never been repaid.[10][11][12] His other aliases are alleged to include Marc Ros Rodriguez, George Kennedy and Zac Moss.[8]

In May 2017, he was reported to have been seen and photographed in a café in Switzerland with a man who could be wanted fugitive Costas Estevez.[13][14] Police seeking to detain Acklom under a European Arrest Warrant had previously been searching for him in Spain after he was released early from prison there before the warrant could be issued.[15][16]

Acklom was on the National Crime Agency's list of 10 most-wanted fugitives.[15] On 30 June 2018 Acklom was arrested at an apartment in Zürich[17] and after extradition in 2019 was set to face trial later that year.[18]

Acklom admitted fraud, relating to £850,000, acquired from a woman he targeted, at Bristol Crown Court in August 2019. He was sentenced to 5 years and 8 months and was the subject of a Sky documentary in 2019 – Conman: The Life and Crimes of Mark Acklom.[19][20][21][22]

Family

Acklom is married to Maria Yolanda Ros Rodriguez who uses the aliases Yolianda Ross, Maria Long and Mary Moss. The couple have two daughters.[23]

References

  1. ↑ Linham, Laura (2 June 2018). "Police hunt continues for wanted conman Mark Acklom". somersetlive.
  2. ↑ Peracha, Qasim (6 September 2017). "Here are the faces of London's nine most wanted". getwestlondon.
  3. ↑ Elvin, Laura; Cameron, Amanda (14 January 2018). "Fugitive accused of swindling Bath mum may have new identity". bathchronicle.
  4. ↑ Mark Richard G Acklom. Family Search. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  5. ↑ "Schoolboy's £446,000 loan fraud", The Times, 5 July 1991, p. 3. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  6. 1 2 "Teenage swindler given four years", Robin Young, The Times, 3 August 1991, p. 3. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  7. ↑ Mark Acklom, Britain’s most wanted man, living it up in Switzerland. Neil Johnston, The Times, 14 September 2017. Retrieved 15 September 2017. (subscription required)
  8. 1 2 Prolific conman Mark Acklom who began life of crime in Sussex on the run after allegedly defrauding lover of £850,000. Rachel Millard, The Argus, 22 October 2016. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  9. ↑ "Choice", Peter Waymark, The Times, 5 August 1993, p. 39. Retrieved 16 September 2017.
  10. ↑ Mark Acklom. National Crime Agency. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  11. ↑ Woman claims 'MI6 lover' Mark Acklom defrauded her of £850k. BBC News, 5 January 2017. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  12. ↑ Britain’s Most Wanted Mark Acklom attempted to scam Marbella divorcee in MI6 con. Rob Horgan, The Olive Press, 27 November 2016. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  13. ↑ One of Britain's most wanted conmen spotted in Geneva. ITV News, 2 June 2017. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  14. ↑ Britain and Europe's most wanted men on the run together. Martin Brunt, Sky News, 13 September 2017. Retrieved 16 September 2017.
  15. 1 2 Suspected fraudster Mark Acklom evades capture after Geneva sighting. Martin Brunt, Sky News, 2 June 2017. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  16. ↑ Alleged British fraudster Mark Acklom evades capture AGAIN in Geneva. Laurence Dollimore, The Olive Press, 2 June 2017. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  17. ↑ "'MI6 conman' Mark Acklom arrested in Switzerland". BBC News. 3 July 2018. Retrieved 3 July 2018.
  18. ↑ "£750,000 fraud man denies charges". BBC. 25 March 2019.
  19. ↑ "Conman: The life and crimes of Mark Acklom", YouTube documentary
  20. ↑ Lumley, Sarah (7 August 2019). "Conman admits wooing divorcee by posing as spy and fleecing her out of £850,000". mirror. Retrieved 7 August 2019.
  21. ↑ "Conman jailed for £300,000 fraud". BBC. 7 August 2019.
  22. ↑ "Mark Acklom: Britain's most notorious conman 'may have suffered brain damage at birth', says mother". Sky News.
  23. ↑ "Fugitive fraudster on run with family", Valentine Low, The Times, 24 October 2017, p. 19.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.