I was made homeless by the Casanova Conman... he left me penniless and went on the run - but this is how I put him in jail

• e-mail

A mother whose life was 'made hell' by a serial fraudster known as the 'Casanova Conman' warns 'he will strike again' after he was released from prison.

Carol-Anne Board, 61, was left without a home for her children after shameless David Coombs spun an elaborate lie about a property.

The prolific scammer - with 23 convictions to his name - led a life of fantasy and betrayal that once saw him abscond to Russia, pocket tens of thousands of pounds from women, and boast of having 227 sexual partners.

He even featured in a BBC documentary series about the parole process, where he whined that he 'hated' the lifestyle of splashing other people's money.

Coombs, 60, was sentenced to four years in jail for multiple fraud offences in 2017 and had his sentence extended in 2020 after he fled the country.

Miss Board told the Daily Mail: 'He picked on the wrong woman when he picked on me. He’ll definitely show his face around now, because he thinks he’s invincible.

'But he’ll be back in prison soon. He’ll do it again. I know for a fact that he will. This is all he knows.'

Carol-Anne Board (pictured) was left without a home for her children after shameless David Coombs spun an elaborate lie about a property

Coombs (pictured after his arrest) was sentenced to four years in jail for multiple fraud offences in 2017 and had his sentence extended in 2020 after he fled the country

The mother of four, now based in Gibraltar, came into contact with Coombs through her work as a hypnotherapist in Poole, Dorset.

A friend and patient of hers was approached by Coombs while on a hospital ward.

The fraudster boasted that he was a property developer in the exclusive Sandbanks area and was renting out his annexe.

He weaved a web of lies and convinced her the property would be a 'fantastic place for the children' - and she gave him £500 for a deposit.

I will remember her evil smile for the rest of my life 

 

I'm Tom Rawstorne, and nearly 30 years ago a 12-year-old murderer, with a gold crucifix hanging round her neck, gave me a moment I'll never forget.

Sharon Carr is to this day Britain's youngest-ever female murderer, having killed an 18-year-old hairdresser in an unprovoked act of gruesome violence. I watched her up close in court for three weeks and it is something I'l never forget. I've written about it in The Crime Desk newsletter - sign up to read it for free.

But the keys never materialised the mother was eventually left with nowhere to live with her two sons.

Miss Board said: 'He came across as a kind man. A very kind, caring, confident, wanted to help, genuine.

She added: 'I was in a house and was due to be leaving there in six weeks. I had a house lined up but David said to my friend "tell her to leave that”.

'He said he had a house that he was happy to rent to for £1,000 a month. Normally I’m not so stupid, but it seemed feasible.'

Miss Board says she was sold a dream by Coombs, who came up with a different excuse each week.

She said: 'He kept saying to me, I’ll give you the keys today, I’ll give you the keys today.

'It was the same thing every week. Originally I had six weeks left, but towards the end, I had nowhere to live with my two boys.

'I then spoke to him and said I “don’t want anything to do with you. I know that you’re a conman. I do not trust you”.

'I told him that somebody would retrieve the debt - and he said "they’ll have to find me first".

'I ended up with nowhere to live.'

He also took a further £1,000 from her friend after arriving at her address in a panic in the middle of the night.

But Miss Board's case was the tip of the iceberg when it came to Coombs' offending.

He was first prosecuted in 1982 and again in 1998 and had even been deported from Norway for targeting vulnerable women there.

Among his crimes was swindling £37,000 out of women he met on dating sites, including tricking a victim into paying a bill of £4,237 at the five star Claridge's hotel in London.

Then came a call from Dorset Police - and Miss Board stepped forward to provide evidence against the conman.

This included a dossier posted through her letterbox from an anonymous source which detailed further claims of fraud and deceit.

The mother of four, now based in Gibraltar, came into contact with Coombs through her work as a hypnotherapist in Poole, Dorset

Pictured: Coombs in a BBC documentary series about the parole process, where he whined that he 'hated' the lifestyle of splashing other people's money

Miss Board said: 'Somebody posted an anonymous letter through my letterbox and it contained information from where he stayed before and didn’t pay his rent. I gave this to the police.

'I said "I don’t know where this came from, but I’m giving it to you. I know a lot of people now want this man".

'And that was enough evidence to finally convict him.'

Miss Board, a former super yacht stewardess, was not involved in a relationship with the conman, but she said he tried to pester a number of women.

Coombs was described as a 'predator' by a judge after admitting nine counts of fraud at Southampton Crown Court in 2017.

The court heard Coombs of Chichester, West Sussex, fleeced victims aged 49-83 years old.

He even targeted a woman in a mental health unit, defrauding her of £7,500 as well as tricking elderly men and women into giving him money.

Miss Board, a former super yacht stewardess, was not involved in a relationship with the conman, but she said he tried to pester a number of women

Judge Peter Ralls QC said: 'You are a conman who uses people as and when you can, regardless of the effect on them.

'The people you dealt with and contacted were often women who you were able to charm and ruthlessly take advantage of.'

Miss Board continued: 'I was there, I stood there in the box and told the court "this is what he did to me. He has made my life hell".

'The judge gave him six years, which was the maximum sentence they could give him.

'He ended up getting a third off of his sentence for pleading guilty, which is just our judicial system.

'While we were in court, his brother was sitting behind me. It looked exactly like him, it was creepy. He said to me, “I’m so sorry this happened to you. He has done it to us too, and I feel so bad”.

'And I felt so sorry for his brother and his wife. It really looked like him and he has to walk around like that. Imagine the problems he has to endure.'

'Women will not come forward and say what he’s done purely because they’re embarrassed. They know for well they should not have done it and they want it all to go away', Miss Board said.

She added: 'The six years he was given is a pittance. He only served a fraction of that. Our judicial system is crap.

'The slimy little toe rag appeared on TV a few years ago and thought he would get out. And he didn't.

'I said to the parole board he’s going to do this again, he’s a conman. He’s going to read you like a book.

'He comes across like a little old man who needs help, but he is a fraud. He'll be back inside again soon.

'I’ll go to court and stand up against him. He will get jailed again, 100%, I can guarantee you. I’ll give you my word on that.'

Pictured: Miss Board speaking in the BBC documentary series Parole, broadcast in February 2023

In the TV series Parole, broadcast in February 2023, Coombs was filmed trying to persuade a three-person parole panel that he was a reformed character.

Coombs, who gained notoriety in the 90s as the 'Casanova conman,' sat down for an interview with parole officer Lucy Gampell, and forensic psychologist Noreen Shami.

As he made excuses for his repeat offending in the meeting held at Wormwood Scrubs prison, Coombs claimed he had 'low confidence' which compelled him to pursue a life of crime.

After hearing from the prisoner, his community offender manager and his victims, the parole board decided not to release Coombs, concluding he was capable of 'really very serious, abusive behaviour'.

In the first episode of the documentary series, he is seen discussing the details of his offences against multiple victims with the board.

Speaking about one of his victims; a woman he began a relationship with before taking £3,396 from her and never paying it back, Coombs said: 'I asked for some money. She said, 'it's fine'. No questions asked. I kind of... abused that.'

He went on to insist he had never threatened or been violent towards anyone in pursuit of cash.

Miss Board told the programme: 'I met David Coombs when my friend was in hospital. As a clinical hypnotherapist I was working with her because she was having her leg amputated and [David] came round and sat with her every day. To be friends with her.'

After revealing to the parole board that he spent every penny of the money the mum gave him, Ms Gampell asked him what it was about the lifestyle of a con artist that appealed to him.

Coombs replied: 'I hate it.'

Ms Gampell challenged his answer and said: 'Well you clearly didn't hate it so, you know, you were doing it for a heck of a long time, to all these different women.'

Coombs said: 'I'm not using an excuse, I was in a difficult position.'

He added: 'It was a behaviour thing... low confidence in myself, like I'm not good enough for anyone.'

Later in the episode, it was revealed that Coombs was released on licence in 2018. In line with his probation, he was required to have regular meetings with his community offender manager Caroline Walsh.

She described how, despite being a regular and reliable attendee at first, Coombs began to grow 'anxious' at his meetings over time.

When she checked his phone, she discovered messages he had exchanged with a woman named Olga, who lived in Russia.

Within a few weeks, he had fled the country to Turkey, and eventually ended up in Russia, where he remained for two years.

Miss Board says she was sold a dream by Coombs, who came up with a different excuse each week

Describing how he absconded, Coombs told Ms Gampell and Ms Shami how he took trains through eastern Europe, before meeting two men who smuggled him across the Russian border to reach Moscow, where Olga and her family were waiting for him.

However, according to Coombs's version of events, the honeymoon period with Olga was short lived - and he soon discovered he had become the victim of her attempted scam.

He claimed Olga had tried to coerce him into giving her $2,500, but he foiled her plot and confronted her, at which point he claims she turned.

'She said: 'I'm in my country. I control you when you're here',' David claimed. 'Olga turned the situation around like I used to be, she put it on me.

'So I realised what type of person I was and I thought: 'I'm not that person anymore. I don't want to be that person ever again'.'

When he returned to the UK, he was arrested and given an extended sentence.

At the end of the episode, which also features the story of a convicted murderer, Coombs receives a letter confirming he will not be eligible for release.

Explaining their decision, psychologist Noreen Shami said she reviewed the victim statements from Coombs's court case which painted a different picture of the con artist.

She explained: 'He was very coercive, very controlling, and there's nothing to suggest that he's worked on those personality traits, and that was what kind of swayed me not to release at this stage.'

Ms Gampell added: 'Witness statements from the victims really affirmed that this was a dangerous man that is capable of really very serious, abusive behaviour.'

She added the danger he posed to potential new victims was 'significantly more than minimal'.

Coombs said: 'I feel that they have made the wrong decision because they're not giving me a chance to prove myself. They are looking on my past more than my future and I think that's wrong of them to do that.

'They say a leopard can never change his spots - that's not in all cases.'

The Daily Mail can reveal that Coombs was automatically released at the end of his sentence. Under current guidelines, there was nothing the Secretary of State could do to prevent him being freed.

A Prison Service spokesman said: 'We can confirm that David Coombs was released at the end of his sentence, in February 2023.'