A charming con artist has been sentenced to more than four years in prison for defrauding a wealthy he met on Tinder out of £150,000.
Richard Dexter, 38, was sentenced to four years and six months in prison for defrauding his lover by falsely claiming to be a “great businessman” on the approach of a “huge windfall.”
Dexter conned Amrita Sebastian, a Middle East-based executive, into wiring him £141,500 in a series of payments that he said were for biopharmaceutical technology investments.
‘Well-educated and well-dressed’ is a phrase used to describe someone who is well-educated and well-dressed Dexter claimed to have £4.2 million in an investment account, but it was a ‘total lie,’ and the account was his friend’s, with only 37p in it.
Miss Sebastian’s money was allegedly spent on’relatively high living’ by the father of two, including spending £15,000 for a car.
According to the court, Pall and 3M have never had any communication with Dexter. Miss Sebastian was persuaded by Dexter that he required money to start manufacturing a piece of scientific equipment called a ‘Bioreactor Paddle.’
Miss Sebastian was assured that she would “lose nothing” and that he would give her £100,000 in interest.
‘I haven’t been able to put into words what I would say to [Miss Sebastian] if she was here,’ Dexter sobbed throughout the two-hour and 15-minute hearing.
‘I haven’t had the confidence to contact her or write it down, but I’m so sorry that I think about it every day, from the moment I wake up until the moment I go to sleep.’
Hayley Jones, Dexter’s 37-year-old partner, sobbed in court and said her three-and-a-half-year boyfriend is a terrific father.
‘I’m left in no doubt that dishonesty is a characteristic of your character, and it is significant,’ Judge Mousley QC said in sentencing Dexter.
‘You are someone who, with an almost amazing ease, resorts to lies without hesitation.
‘When your honesty is called into question, you search for more lies to hide your traces.’
‘There was virtually no sign of you apologising to [Miss Sebastian], and there’s little sign of any contrition,’ the judge said.
‘What you did had an impact on her mental health, and you never gave it a second thought.’
A hearing has been scheduled to determine how the money will be repaid.
Dexter, of Southsea in Portsmouth, Hants, contacted Indian Miss Sebastian on Tinder in 2015 and pretended to be a businessman providing biopharmaceutical technology, according to the court.
‘He claimed to be a successful businessman selling biopharma technology and he said he was worth £6.8 million and was connected with Hollywood studios,’ prosecutor Robert Bryan said at Portsmouth Crown Court.
‘He alluded to his enormous fortune, private aircraft, and fancy automobiles, and indicated he had more interest in his assets than a doctor’s income,’ according to the report.
‘Hey!’ Dexter texted Miss Sebastian one time. I’m 32, most of my pals went to university and have loans and concerns, yet they all make between £40,000 and £60,000. Just because I could, I bought a hot air balloon the other day.’
Miss Sebastian, a Dubai resident who visits the UK twice a year, met with Dexter in August of 2015.
She made a number of payments over the course of 15 months, some of which were as large as £68,000.
Dexter persuaded her to send him the final £5,500 towards the end of 2016, when his finances were in ‘dire straits.’
‘Because he already had so much of my money, I felt trapped to keep him onside, and I believed the £5,500 was a minor loan,’ Miss Sebastian said.
However, she stated that she still believes there is “no risk.”
Later, when Miss Sebastian appealed for her investments to be returned, Dexter said that he had ‘struck a deal with 3M for £3.6 million’ and that he had ‘reached a deal with 3M for £3.6 million.’
Miss Sebastian ‘obviously’ got nothing in return, with Dexter making ‘excuses’ and ‘leading her on’.
Police raided Dexter’s residence in April 2018 after Miss Sebastian reported the scam.
Roy Maunder, a businessman Dexter met, stated he was “always trying to portray himself as a successful businessman.”
‘His stories come across as fantastical,’ Mr. Maunder added. He was a liar, but he had a charming personality.’
Dexter’s grandma said in court that he would beg her to transfer him £10 on a daily basis because his ‘card wasn’t working.’
Judge Mousley QC was requested for’mercy’ and not to imprison Dexter since he is ‘likeable and a very decent father,’ according to John Lucas, the defense attorney.
Miss Sebastian’s money, he claimed, was spent on ‘ordinary day-to-day life’ and