An ‘evil’ fraudster who conned his own grandad out of his £64,000 life savings has been jailed for two and a half years.
Aidan Frier, 26, from South Shields, faked photos of himself out on jobs and bank statements to convince his family he had a high-flying position with a water company.
His grandfather, who had not long lost his wife before being targeted, said his ‘world crumbled’ having been persuaded to hand over thousands for courses that never existed.
Frier admitted fraud by false representation and was jailed at Newcastle Crown Court.
Prosecutor Gurjot Kaur told the court: ‘In 2021, the defendant concocted a fictitious job with a real company called Swiftwater Solutions.
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‘He not only lied to his grandfather but also continued this lie with his family, including his mother. He would send photographs of his surroundings while on the job, corroborating his lies.’
The court heard Frier soon started asking for ‘urgent financial assistance’ from his grandad, who was happy to assist him in furthering his career and believed the money would all be paid back.
Ms Kaur added: ‘He had no reason to doubt him and trusted him.’
The court heard in 2024 Frier’s offending ‘escalated’ to him forging emails from Revolut bank to back up his claims of being employed.
Frier even sat beside his grandad and ‘guided him through’ the online application for a £4,000 loan, which was transferred straight to him.
It was when the victim started to ask about repayment and felt ‘fobbed off’ that Frier’s lies unravelled.
By then Frier had pocketed a total of £64,414.
The pensioner said in impact statements, which were read in court, that his ‘world crumbled’ when the truth was exposed and added: ‘I will never get over this.
‘I will always be scared after this and can never trust him again.
‘He needs to admit he has been evil by stealing from me.’
He added ‘my life savings are gone’ and he worries about receiving a large and unexpected bill that he cannot pay.
The judge, Recorder Christopher Knox, jailed Frier for two-and-a-half years and told him he deceived his grandad in a ‘startling and outrageous’ way.
He said: ‘For three years and more you deceitfully stole what I understand to be your grandather’s entire life savings, savings he had made in the course of a long hard working life and which he wanted to be able to use to ensure he was going to be able to have a reasonable retirement.’
Recorder Knox said Frier built a ‘fantasy life’ and added: ‘You sent pictures to your mother pretending you were working.
‘It seems you were in fact pretending, using material you borrowed or stole from your flat mate to show you were working for this particular company and you sent pictures pretending you were at sea.
‘This really was a particularly nasty, cynical and persistent fraud. It was elaborate and carried out with considerable determination.
‘You used the money to live a lifestyle you didn’t deserve.’
Peter Sabiston, defending, said: ‘He is still a young man, he’s completely isolated from his family, that is his own fault but it’s an element of punishment that will be active long beyond any sentence imposed.
‘He is genuinely sorry, he feels shame, remorse and sorrow.’
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