Blackfriars Crown Court in south London has jailed four men who pressured hundreds of investors into buying worthless “rare earth metals”.
Christopher Sabin, 46, Tobias Ridpath, 52, William Berkeley, 53, and Nicholas Start, 36, were convicted of fraud offences following a trial at Blackfriars Crown Court.
Christopher Sabin was handed a nine-year jail term and was disqualified as a director for 15 years – the maximum disqualification period. Tobias Ridpath was also jailed for nine years and disqualified for 15 years.
Nicholas Start was handed a seven-year prison sentence and a ten-year director disqualification order, while William Berkeley was jailed for four years and disqualified for six years.
The trial heard how the group operated in two companies under the names Denver Trading – and advertised an investment opportunity in rare earth elements.
The sales were made through a series of brokers – including a company called London Commodity Market, which had offices in Canary Wharf and of which Start was the sole director.
The men convinced investors to part with their money – often five-figure sums – knowing that there was no viable market for resale. In total, investors paid more than £7 million for worthless “investments”.
After sentencing, Deputy Head of the CPS Specialist Fraud Division, Naheed Hussain, said:
“These men deliberately and persistently targeted hundreds of members of the public through high-pressure selling of commodities, which in reality had no resale potential.
“Their actions caused significant financial hardship to their victims, some of whom lost their life savings.
“The CPS worked with the police to analyse the complex financial evidence and build a compelling case, resulting in the guilty verdicts returned by the jury.”
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