Britain's most notorious conman is about to be released from prison early
August 12, 2021, 8:45 am

Britain's most notorious conman is about to be released from prison early

Mark Acklom

According to the Sky News, Britain's most notorious conman is about to be freed early from prison, but will have to live under tough restrictions.

Serial fraudster Mark Acklom must declare his earnings, business dealings and assets, close any foreign bank accounts, stop using false names and tell police of his movements.

The curbs on his freedom come in a rare Serious Crime Prevention Order that will last for five years. If he flouts any of the restrictions, he risks another five years in jail.

The Sky News reported Acklom's freedom may be postponed anyway as Spanish authorities launch a bid to extradite him for an unfinished jail sentence he fled from in 2016.

When he is released on licence from his UK sentence in a fortnight, the 48-year-old will have served barely a third of the five years and eight months he got for duping a woman out of all her money after promising to marry her.

He used an alias and posed as an MI6 agent and millionaire banker as he wooed Gloucestershire divorcee Carolyn Woods before isolating her from her family and friends, stealing £300,000 and leaving her heartbroken, destitute and suicidal.

At the time, he was married with two young children and living with his family a few miles away - telling Ms Woods he was flying to see her from his home in Switzerland.

Ms Woods, who has given up hope of getting back any of the money Acklom stole, said: "He always does what is best for him. I don't think having a Serious Crime Prevention Order in his name is really going to affect what he does, unless he is physically tagged or something like that."

Acklom vanished with Ms Woods' money in 2013 and fled abroad, first to Spain, then Italy, then Spain again where he was jailed, then Switzerland where Sky News tracked him down.

His arrest and extradition in 2019 followed 30 years of fraud which began as a 16-year-old public schoolboy when he was imprisoned for stealing his father's gold credit card.

Acklom took his pals on trips to Europe in hired private jets, before persuading a building society to give him a £500,000 mortgage which he used to buy a London mansion.

Over the years, he has been jailed five times for deception in Spain, once in the UK for forging medical prescriptions and more recently in Switzerland for fraud.

In 2015 he was jailed for three years in Spain for defrauding two brothers - he conned them into paying him deposits on flats he claimed to own in London.

Halfway through his sentence he appealed and was given temporary release. But he fled to Switzerland - taking advantage of open borders and changing his name by deed poll to get new passports.

The Spanish authorities have asked for his extradition so he can complete the outstanding 18 months of his sentence, and a court hearing in London is expected soon.

Former detective chief superintendent Kevin Hurley, who has followed the Acklom case, said: "When you consider the criminality that goes on in Spain, the serious violence, people trafficking, they're probably not going to be overly keen to keep him in prison for too long, so I'm sure he will find a way of talking his way out for early release there."

While Acklom was on the run from Spain - and wanted by British police - we discovered him living with his Spanish wife and children in a luxury lakeside apartment outside Zurich, where he duped a German former banker into giving him 400,000 euros for a company he claimed was making black box data recorders for driverless cars.

Harald Herbon said he was persuaded to invest the large sum after various phone calls with Acklom who told him he was the European agent for billionaire US car designer Elon Musk.

Mr Herbon admitted he hadn't actually met Acklom.

Source: skynews

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BENEFIT, the Kingdom’s innovator and leading company in Fintech and electronic financial transactions service, held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) at the company’s headquarters in the Seef District.
During the meeting, shareholders approved all items listed on the agenda, including the ratification of the minutes of the previous AGM held on 26 March 2024. The session reviewed and approved the Board’s Annual Report on the company’s activities and financial performance for the fiscal year ended 31 December 2024, and the shareholders expressed their satisfaction with the company’s operational and financial results during the reporting period.
The meeting also reviewed the Independent External Auditor’s Report on the company’s consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2024. Subsequently, the shareholders approved the audited financial statements for the fiscal year. Based on the Board’s recommendation, the shareholders approved the distribution of a cash dividend equivalent to 10% of the paid-up share capital.
Furthermore, the shareholders endorsed the allocation of a total amount of BD 172,500 as remuneration to the members of the Board for the year ended 31 December 2024, subject to prior clearance by related authorities.
The extension of the current composition of the Board was approved, which includes ten members and one CBB observer, for a further six-month term, expiring in September 2025, pending no objection from the CBB.
The meeting reviewed and approved the Corporate Governance Report for 2024, which affirmed the company’s full compliance with the corporate governance directives issued by the CBB and other applicable regulatory frameworks. The AGM absolved the Board Members of liability for any of their actions during the year ending on 31st December 2024, in accordance with the Commercial Companies Law.
In alignment with regulatory requirements, the session approved the reappointment of Ernst & Young (EY) as the company’s External Auditors for the fiscal year 2025, covering both the parent company and its subsidiaries—Sinnad and Bahrain FinTech Bay. The Board was authorised to determine the external auditors’ professional fees, subject to approval from the CBB, and the meeting concluded with a discussion of any additional issues as per Article (207) of the Commercial Companies Law.
Speaking on the company’s performance, Mr. Mohamed Al Bastaki, Chairman BENEFIT , stated: “In terms of the financial results for 2024, I am pleased to say that the year gone by has also been proved to be a success in delivering tangible results. Growth rate for 2024 was 19 per cent. Revenue for the year was BD 17 M (US$ 45.3 Million) and net profit was 2 Million ($ 5.3 Million).

Mr. Al Bastaki also announced that the Board had formally adopted a new three-year strategic roadmap to commence in 2025. The strategy encompasses a phased international expansion, optimisation of internal operations, enhanced revenue diversification, long-term sustainability initiatives, and the advancement of innovation and digital transformation initiatives across all service lines.
“I extend my sincere appreciation to the CBB for its continued support of BENEFIT and its pivotal role in fostering a stable and progressive regulatory environment for the Kingdom’s banking and financial sector—an environment that has significantly reinforced Bahrain’s standing as a leading financial hub in the region,” said Mr. Al Bastaki. “I would also like to thank our partner banks and valued customers for their trust, and our shareholders for their ongoing encouragement. The achievements of 2024 set a strong precedent, and I am confident they will serve as a foundation for yet another successful and impactful year ahead.”
Chief Executive of BENEFIT; Mr. Abdulwahed AlJanahi commented, “The year 2024 represented another pivotal chapter in BENEFIT ’s evolution. We achieved substantial progress in advancing our digital strategy across multiple sectors, while reinforcing our long-term commitment to the development of Bahrain’s financial services and payments landscape. Throughout the year, we remained firmly aligned with our objective of delivering measurable value to our shareholders, strategic partners, and customers. At the same time, we continued to play an active role in enabling Bahrain’s digital economy by introducing innovative solutions and service enhancements that directly address market needs and future opportunities.”
Mr. AlJanahi affirmed that BENEFIT has successfully developed a robust and well-integrated payment network that connects individuals and businesses across Bahrain, accelerating the adoption of emerging technologies in the banking and financial services sector and reinforcing Bahrain’s position as a growing fintech hub, and added, “Our achievements of the past year reflect a long-term vision to establish a resilient electronic payment infrastructure that supports the Kingdom’s digital economy. Key developments in 2024 included the implementation of central authentication for open banking via BENEFIT Pay”
Mr. AlJanahi concluded by thanking the Board for its strategic direction, the company’s staff for their continued dedication, and the Central Bank of Bahrain, member banks, and shareholders for their valuable partnership and confidence in the company’s long-term vision.