Three ‘fraudsters’ duped own families to fund lavish lifestyle
Three fraudsters duped their own families and friends with fake contracts from the London Olympics 2012 in order to fund a lavish lifestyle of yachts, Bentleys and million-pound mansions, a court has heard.
Spencer Mitchell Steinberg, 45, of Lodge End in Radlett, Hertfordshire, and Michael Strubel, 53, of Royal Drive, New Southgate, deny conspiring to defraud investors. Jolan Marc Saunders, 39, of Almonds, Avenue, Buckhurst Hill, has pleaded guilty.
The men lied to investors in their companies, including an electrical wholesaler, which they said had won a huge contract to supply goods such as irons and trouser presses to the Olympic Village ahead of the 2012 Games, jurors heard.
“The defendants persuaded people to part with their money on the promise they were going to invest it for them in a good, profitable business, then effectively pocked the money themselves,” said Prosecutor Sarah Forshaw.
“It made them rich, rich at the expense of people they defrauded… You will hear about Bentleys, Ferraris, Porsches, Rolls Royces, yachts and million pound houses.”
The court heard how the men set up a £40 million Ponzi scheme, of the sort made famous by now-jailed American Jewish fraudster Bernie Maddoff, who conned his clients out of billions of dollars.
The men invited people to invest their cash for up to two months. After earning good interest in this time, investors were then persuaded to “roll their money over” for another two months, and to tell their friends to get involved, said Ms Forshaw.
The men first came to court in 2013, after an investigation by the Serious Fraud Office and the Serious Organised Crime Agency, which looked at their activities between 2006 and 2010. Their trial is expected to last two months.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
