Conman who pretended to be MI6 spy in romance scam ordered to pay back £125,000
Mark Acklom mislead Carolyn Woods into thinking the pair would marry despite him already having a wife
A conman who posed as a MI6 agent and wealthy banker has been ordered to pay back £125,000 to a woman he promised to marry in a romance scam.
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Mark Acklom, 52, fleeced divorcee Carolyn Woods out of all her money which left her suicidal after he fled abroad.
He was later tracked down to Spain and Switzerland and he was extradited in 2019, before being sent back to Spain to complete a sentence he'd fled from there.
The same year, Acklom was then sentenced to five years and eight months after admitting five counts of fraud against Ms Woods.
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In the five years that followed prosecutors attempted to recover the money stolen and the case was finally brought back to court on Friday.
Acklom, who now lives in Spain with his wife and two children was ordered to pay £125,000 or face two years in prison if he does not comply.
It was agreed by the lawyers involved that he had benefited for £710,000, but that his traceable assets were only £125,000.
During his fraudulent mission, Acklom claimed he was involved in secret MI6 missions and said he was friends with celebrities, and claimed to have once spoken with Hilary Clinton.
He duped Ms Woods into lending him her life savings by misleading her into thiking the pair were in a "committed relationship," despite him already being married.
Judge Martin Picton said: "[Ms Woods] was drawn in by his determination to bleed her dry and deprived of her dignity by the exercising of his quite extraordinary powers as a conman refined over many years.
"The chances of this court recovering any money from him pretty much evaporated when he was extradited to Spain."
Ms Woods hit out at the justice system following the delays and said "the criminals must be laughing"
She told Sky: "The whole thing has been a waste of time and only prolonged my distress for another six years.
"We have heard that the criminal justice system is unfit for purpose and just about everything that has happened over the past 12 plus years has highlighted that. The criminals must be laughing."