Man stole from famous jockeys by pretending to be them in banks
A man who repeatedly pretended to be famous jockeys to steal money from their banks has been jailed.
Joseph Mason, aged 40 and from Wolverhampton, began his fraud spree back in October 2014 when he entered Barclays Bank in Shrewsbury pretending to be a famous jockey.
Using personal details he had found online, Mason managed to successfully answer the bank security questions and walked away with £2,600.
After success in Shropshire, Mason moved closer to home and a few weeks later entered an HSBC store in Acocks Green, Birmingham, to begin impersonating his second victim.
Over the next three years, Mason continued the charade, travelling around the West Midlands impersonating jockeys and a jeweller in order to withdraw large quantities of money banks.
Mason was caught on CCTV for most of the offences, where he was seen wearing a quilted jacket with khaki trousers and Adidas trainers.
He was identified through CCTV, arrested and when officers searched his property the items of clothing were found that matched the footage.
A mobile phone was also recovered from his underwear which contained the bank details of all his victims.
On Thursday Mason, of Brantley Avenue, Finchfield, pleaded guilty to three counts of fraud and was sentenced to three years in prison at Birmingham Crown Court.
Detective Sergeant Allan McDonald, from the economic crime unit, said: “Mason was a callous criminal who took pleasure in taking large amounts of money from hard working citizens.
“We hope this sentence will provide some comfort to all of the victims that have been affected by Mason’s actions."
If you have an incident of fraud to report contact Action Fraud direct on 0300 123 2040 or visit Action Fraud at actionfraud.police.uk
