Police slap notorious Northampton begging fraudster with strict set of rules to follow

Police have given a notorious Northampton fraudster a strict set of rules to follow after multiple reports of begging in Kingsthorpe.

Northamptonshire Police confirmed on Friday (October 8) that a 54-year-old man, dubbed the Kingsthorpe con-man, has been given a community protection warning (CPW).

The fraudster must now abide by three rules set out in the CPW, which are:

• Do not approach any member of the public in Northampton and ask for money for anything including taxis, food or utility bills.

• Do not enter the boundaries of anyone’s property or knock on the door of anyone’s property in Northampton for the purpose of asking for money, gifts, donations or handouts.

• Do not visit any business premises in Northampton for the purpose of asking for money, gifts, donations or handouts from the proprietors or their staff.

A Northamptonshire Police spokeswoman urged the public to report any further incidents regarding the man on 101 quoting the crime reference number 21000149394.

Who is the Kingsthorpe con-man?

Last month (September), several residents came forward on social media claiming that a man in Kingsthorpe had been making false claims to guilt-trip people into giving him money.

One member of the public posted in a Kingsthorpe community Facebook group that they encountered a "potential con-man" in the area.

The anonymous post, which described their encounter with the man, said: "[He] was leaned against the wall on his phone, looked very calm. He spotted me and started to act frantic, claiming to need to get to Coventry to see his wife who had been in a road traffic accident, asked for money to get there via taxi as he had locked himself out of his house.

"The story became very elaborate. Was in a panic, I tried to help but had no cash so I advised he contact an emergency locksmith service to get back into his home. He said great idea and rushed off on the phone out of sight.

"When I returned to my car, he was in the same spot, he approached me, leaning against the wall looking very calm and eating some lunch. Looked very sheepish when he saw me again.

"Can’t be sure he was a con-man but very suspicious behaviour, please be careful."

This prompted a huge response from other residents, who have had similar experiences with a man within proximity to Alexandra Terrace in Kingsthorpe.