What happened to the ultimate conman?
The unforgettable story of Robert Hendy-Freegard landed on Netflix earlier this month – a man who “controlled, conned and fleeced at least seven women and one man, stealing close to one million pounds”.
The three-part-series explores his past crimes and looks at a family who are currently fearing for their mother’s safety.
Hendy-Freegard targeted multiple people over the years, pretending to be an M15 agent.
He would use his powers of persuasion to drive his victims away from their families by convincing them they were being pursued by the IRA.
After finally being caught by the FBI and Scotland Yard, he was jailed in 2005 and labelled ‘The Puppet Master’ for the control he exercised over victims.
He was given a life sentence for two counts of kidnapping, 10 of theft and eight of deception.
However, after appealing against his kidnapping convictions, his life sentence was revoked. He was released in 2009.
As the documentary revealed, he is now in a relationship Sandra Clifton, 49, whose family have not seen her since 2014.
Her two children Jake and Sophie, feature in the series, where they open up about how they believe their mother is his latest target and is being coercively controlled.
Hendy-Freegard’s whereabouts have remained unknown over the years, but now it is believed he has been tracked down and is living in Berkshire, according to The Times.
He has “strongly denied allegations” that he is controlling Sandra, and told the publication he had been “publicly castigated” for years over his past crimes.
The Times reported:
“Last week we tracked him down to a house in Berkshire. Pictured for the first time in many years, Hendy-Freegard did not want to speak on the record at first. The house had rubbish all over the floor, and dogs were shut in a room upstairs.
“Later he phoned a woman he said was Sandra, saved in his phone as ‘Hot Stuff Sandra’, and remained on the call, during which she said she was not being coercively controlled by her partner.”
It was noted that she did not speak to the reporter independently and refused to reveal her location when asked.
The Puppet Master: Hunting the Ultimate Conman is available to watch on Netflix now.
