TOWIE star Lewis Bloor's alleged victim was forced to "remortage his home" while one OAP spent more than ￡100,000 on cheap diamonds in a ￡3million scam, a court has heard.

       Bloor, 31, allegedly posed as "Thomas Harkin" to dupe investors into buying the precious stones at a 600 per cent mark-up.

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       Towie star Lewis Bloor used a fake name to con elderly victims in a ￡3million diamond scam, Southwark Crown Court was told Credit: PA 5

       Bloor appeared on the hit ITV 2 show from 2013

       About 200 people, many of whom were elderly, were allegedly fleeced of more than ￡3 million by fraudsters working for two firms, Imperial Assets Solutions (IAS) and Henderson & Forbes.

       Southwark Crown Court heard Bloor was paid ￡150,000, with some of the money paid on to others, by IAS, before leaving to pursue his television career.

       Brokers told potential investors that diamonds were the 'in thing', jurors were told today.

       They said the gems would potentially shoot up in value in the near future, even though the stones they bought were only worth a fraction of what they were paying.

       One victim was forced to remortgage his house due to the money he had lost to the scheme, the court heard.

       IAS was liquidated in February 2014 after it had taken ￡1.4m from investors, but fraudsters had already switched to the new firm Henderson and Forbes with Joseph Jordan listed as director, it was alleged.

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       Brokers persuaded one retiree to invest about ￡100,000 in coloured diamonds, jurors were told.

       The court heard a recording of a broker calling himself 'Stephen Lynch' telling the victim she needed to purchase a diamond through Henderson and Forbes to sell all of her diamonds.

       The broker told the elderly woman she needed to buy a pink diamond through them to become their client, so the firm could "facilitate the exit".

       He said: "You are allowed to sell more diamonds through us because we are a wholesaler, we are allowed to do so."

       The alleged victim replied: "Sorry, I'm not buying any more, I'm not buying any more diamonds from anybody."

       When she tried to contact 'Stephen Lynch' at Henderson and Forbes a few weeks later, the woman was told he was not available before the call was ended.

       'RARE DIAMONDS'

       Prosecutor David Durose QC argued: "The fraudsters told their victims that they had access to coloured diamonds which were rare and, therefore, valuable.

       "The victims were also given the impression, however, that the diamonds would rise in value quickly.

       "These 'investments' were sold on the basis that they were 'short term' investments.

       "Many victims were told that the diamonds could be easily traded and cashed in at any time.

       "Several victims speak of how they would not have handed over their money without that promise having been made. That is understandable.

       "Here was a company which claimed to be well established in the diamond trade.

       "If its claims were to be believed, it could achieve things in the diamond industry that the average person could not.

       "That promise was a lie."

       Durose added: "The fraudsters never intended to sell the diamonds and the companies had already earned substantial amounts of money, many times the actual cost of the diamonds, by selling the stones to their victims at grossly inflated prices.

       "In the accounts of all of the victims who have been spoken to, not one had their diamonds sold by the brokerage.

       "Although no such sales took place, some victims were encouraged to believe that they were imminent.

       "In fact, the brokerage's sole intention was to fleece their customers of huge sums of money, leaving their customers saddled with additional storage costs and a practically worthless diamond."

       Fifteen per cent of the investment disappeared straight away, was not going anywhere near the price of the payment, and Mr Bloor knew that, of course, because he received that money.

       Prosecutor David Durose

       Victims were often saddled with their practically worthless diamonds stuck in storage in Switzerland, unable to sell them because the VAT they need to pay was worth more than the stone's sale price, jurors heard.

       One alleged victim, Michael Williams, described Bloor - ex-cast member of ITV2 reality show The Only Way Is Essex - as having a "very persistent style" which "subtly put pressure on me", the court heard.

       Durose claimed: "Mr Williams said he was made to feel that he was buying a valuable item at a fair market price which would quickly go up in value with little risk."

       He said Mr Williams bought a stone for ￡5,978.70, while Bloor was paid ￡896.81, or 15 per cent of the investment sum.

       "These diamonds were marked up by five or six times so that's probably about the sort of figure that IAS would have actually paid for the diamond.

       "Fifteen per cent of the investment disappeared straight away, was not going anywhere near the price of the payment, and Mr Bloor knew that, of course, because he received that money," Durose told the court.

       Bloor, of Buckhurst Hill, Essex, denies conspiracy to defraud between May 7, 2013 and July 1, 2014.

       He is on trial alongside Joseph Jordan, 29, from Waltham Cross, Hertfordshire, George Walters, 29, from Beckenham, Kent, Max Potter, 25, of Enfield, Middlesex, Nathan Wilson, 28, of Brentwood, Essex, and Simon Akbari, 27, from Loughton, Essex, who also deny the charge.

       Both of the firms involved purported to be specialist brokers for people wanting to buy or sell investment-grade stones, the court heard.

       People were allegedly cold-called and sent glossy brochures with quotations from the world's leading diamond company De Beers.

       They also showed office addresses in a prestigious Canary Wharf skyscraper and Antwerp, the worldwide home of the diamond trade, jurors were told.

       The trial continues tomorrow.

       5

       It's alleged he posed as posed as a "Thomas Harkin" to dupe investors into buying the stones at a 600 per-cent mark-up Credit: Instagram 5

       Southwark Crown Court heard Bloor was paid ￡150,000 by one firm before leaving to pursue his TV career Credit: Instagram 5

       Bloor has denied conspiracy to defraud Credit: Dan Charity

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