Bigamist pretended to be a war hero to woo bride No 5
A FANTASIST who wooed his fifth bride by claiming to be a decorated Falklands hero before fleecing her for more than £50,000 has been jailed for 15 months for bigamy and fraud.
John Lewis, 48, told vulnerable Maureen Walder he was a crack paratrooper who had been shot in the legs during the Falklands War.
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He also claimed he had worked as a chauffeur for a lord and had made a fortune selling property for wealthy Arabs. The couple tied the knot in a lavish Sri Lankan ceremony just months after meeting in 2006.
But the fraudster was still married to his fourth wife and had applied for £50,000 in loans in his new bride’s name.
Taunton Crown Court heard how Lewis fabricated his CV to secure the couple a job managing an estate in Tuscany. But his scam was rumbled when Ms Walder, 54, returned home to Minehead, Somerset, after a row and found a pile of letters from debt collectors.
Lewis pleaded guilty to bigamy and three charges of fraud.
Ms Walder said: “I never want to see or hear from him again. I remember thinking it was too good to be true and it was. All I wanted was a bit of romance but my hopes and dreams have come crashing down. I don’t think I’ll ever trust a man again.”
