A fraudster who impersonated bank customers to steal their life-savings won’t pay back a penny because he only has 65p to his name. Stewart Mills, 64, of Islington, walked into Barclays branches around Central and East London armed with fake passports and driving licenses, convincing staff to let him change the beneficiaries on accounts so he could funnel away more than £200,000.
The scam worked by downloading the Barclays app onto an empty mobile phone, so Mills could login and pose as the customer. Four out of the nine frauds were successful, reaping £123,550. For the other five attempts, totalling £111,141, staff refused to give Mills access or he fled the branch fearing detection.
Mills, a retired Tube driver, was previously convicted of fraud and money laundering offences between 2009 and 2013, and was jailed for 18 months in 2012. In 2024 Mills also received an 18-month sentence suspended for 18 months for a £17,000 fraud on a bank in Essex.
At Inner London Crown Court on Friday (August 8), prosecutor Linda Shamel said the offences were aggravated by Mills’ use of impersonation, showing ‘a significant degree of planning and sophistication’.
Mills was arrested on April 4 ,2024 at his wife’s flat in a Georgian townhouse in Cloudesley Road, Barnsbury, where, according to court documents, police discovered an Apple iPhone containing images of identity documents, handwritten notes of Barclays customer account information, and pictures of signature strips.
Mills was charged with nine counts of fraud by false representation, and one count of possessing articles for use in fraud. He pleaded guilty to all 10 counts in May this year.
‘He was feeling desperate’
Fer Chinner, defending Mills, disagreed the fraud was entirely sophisticated. “He walks in. There’s no script or disguise. He’s merely caught on camera. That attests more to his role being the face of the fraud. The one that carries the most risk and lowest reward,” she said.
In his defence statement, which was not contested by the prosecution, Mills claimed he only earned six per cent of the cash, and was acting on orders for the people who harvested the identification documents. Recorder James Willan KC said it had ‘all the hallmarks’ of a fishing scam, where victims are tricked into handing over personal data.
Asked what means Mills has to pay any compensation or costs, Ms Chinner said he is in receipt of £400 a month in Personal Independence Payment (PIP), is not yet eligible for his pension, and only 65p to his name in a Santander account with no assets.
Giving some explanation, Ms Chinner said: “At the time this was happening his partner [a cleaner] was no longer able to work because she was undergoing breast cancer treatment. They had absolutely no money. He was feeling desperate and unable to contribute how he liked.”
Recorder Willan rejected Ms Chinner’s call for a suspended sentence as he jailed Mills for three years and one month. The judge said the crimes were aggravated by the discovery of identity documents relating to more potential victims, and Mills’ previous convictions.
“You were performing a critical role in what you knew was a sophisticated fraud. I also consider your role in isolation was relatively sophisticated,” added Recorder Willian.
Mills got three years and one month for the lead offence of Count 2, with concurrent sentences on the other counts.
The offences were as follows:
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December 15 2021 – Barclays in South Street, Romford
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January 8 2022 – Barclays in South Street, Romford, for £50,000
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January 11 2022 – Barclays in South Street, Romford, for £24,000
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March 9 2022 – Barclays in South Street, Romford, £24,550
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April 28 2022 – Barclays in High Holborn, City of London, for £25,000
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December 23 2022 – Barclays in Great Portland Street, Westminster
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December 30 2022 – Barclays in Great Portland Street, Westminster
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January 23 2023 – Barclays in Tottenham Court Road, Camden
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October 3 2023 – Barclays in High Holborn, City of London
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