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Man Tricks Charity Into Paying For Fake Background Checks
May 03, 2013 posted by Steve Brownstein
A serial fraudster who tricked a disabled children's charity into paying £14,000 for fake criminal record checks has today walked free from court.
Kenneth McKeon, from Plymouth, who has been dubbed 'King Con', was paid the money by Krisis Kids to see if volunteers had a history of sex offences or violence.
He gained their confidence by pretending he had a disabled child and that he was suffering cancer.
But the 43-year-old had no access to the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) and simply pocketed the cash.
McKeon has a string of convictions for swindling dozens of victims and charities out of money, Plymouth Crown Court heard.
He pleaded guilty to seven counts of fraud and was given 200 hours community service.
Sentencing him, Judge Paul Darlow said: 'The order I give you is one of unpaid work, 200 on each of these guilty pleas to be completed in 12 months.'
McKeon was jailed in 2009 after setting up a bogus children's charity that promised to send underprivileged kids on holiday.
After raising £47,500 in a series of scams he was labelled a 'persistent and dishonest menace' and jailed for three and a half years.
His other scams included a Cardiff-based company called Nationwide Associates that billed homeowners £1,000 for a non-existent speedy sale service.
