Someone I was acquainted with:
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2011999/Deported-Nigerian-man-131-aliases-crept-Britain-carry-1m-fraud.htmlDeported Nigerian man with 131 aliases crept back into Britain to carry out £1m fraud
A deported Nigerian conman with 131 different identities sneaked back into Britain to carry out a £1 million crime, a court heard yesterday.
The man, who calls himself David Peters, was jailed for fraud and deported to Nigeria seven years ago.
But six months later he took advantage of flaws in the immigration system, returning under a different name and was promptly granted UK citizenship.
Peters, one of Britain's most prolific identity fraudsters, used the identities to trick banks, mortgage lenders and government agencies into giving him money.
The 30-year-old used it to fund a luxurious lifestyle, buying an £80,000 Porsche Carrera, a Mercedes and a Lexus.
When police caught up with him, they found a large collection of designer shoes, expensive watches and a state-of-the-art home entertainment system at his £300,000 three-bedroom home in north-west London.
Yesterday Peters was jailed for five years and eight months at the Old Bailey after admitting 30 offences.
He pleaded guilty to charges of fraud amounting to £230,000 but detectives believe he could have netted at least £1 million.
Passing sentence, Judge Gerald Gordon said: 'I have not the slightest idea what your actual name is'.
The judge said Peters had used false documents to obtain money and benefits 'on a vast scale using a huge number of false identities'.
Peters was jailed in April 2004 for fraud and deported in July under the name of Goke Adeyemi.
He returned in December 2004 and was given UK citizenship under the name of Oluesyi Adebayo. This could not happen now because deportees are fingerprinted.
Police think he may have netted as much as £1million during throughout his frauds.
Peters used fake passports, driving licences and National Insurance numbers to create false identities.
He then fraudulently applied for £168,575 in benefits from three London councils, claiming to be tenant and landlord at the same address.
He obtained a £250,000 mortgage for a house in Edgware, north-west London, which he shared with his wife and two children.
He successfully applied for 74 UK driving licences under false names at post offices across the country.
Detective Inspector Richard Fisher, from the City of London Police, said: 'It is a great day for the British taxpayer that someone who has lived off the state has been put in prison where he belongs.'
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Around the time of this man's arrest a Nigerian claimed that most of the Nigerian traffic wardens in Camden and Barnet were using false names ... and that the Head Warden was a multimillionaire with properties in several other countries. He wasn't believed ... then, three weeks later, the "mastermind" warden made a mistake and was found to be what his accuser claimed he was.
