“Things came to a head on February 8th. I got very concerned and I was like, ‘Oh my God, what have I done?’.”
“I was very scared and felt like a total idiot.”
Graeme Stagg talks about the moment he realized he had been the victim of an investment scam, the most comprehensive and devastating scam ever investigated by the Money Box team.
It started in August 2021 when Graeme wanted his life savings to work harder for him.
He started researching online and came across NCapital, which has since disappeared.
It offered to help people invest in cryptocurrencies.
Graeme is a widowed 77 year old but having served 22 years in the RAF and retired as squadron commander he felt he knew what he was doing.
He started out investing a small amount, just £50, but was told the more money he invested the better his business would do.
The next day he pocketed £10,000 and in just a few weeks Graeme had been so thoroughly looted by the criminals that he had transferred well over £100,000 worth of savings.
At this point, Graeme became desperate. Bit by bit, the criminals used this desperation to draw him even deeper into their net.
The scammer convinced Graeme that there was a problem with the company he had invested in, but that a second man, calling himself Geoff, could help him get all his money back – but they needed more money for that. When Graeme got desperate, he started throwing more good money after bad. He was now tens of thousands of pounds in debt.
The next step for the criminals was to secure hundreds of thousands of pounds of equity release capital raised from Graeme’s treasured family home.
When that was over, the criminal’s final act was to convince a now utterly lost and utterly desperate Graeme to use a quick sale company to sell his house – all with the promise of just one more investment to get his get all the money back.
The scammer promised Graeme that once he sold his house he would buy it back immediately and hand it over to Graeme who would get his house and all his money back.
The day this was supposed to happen was February 8th 2022 when Graeme allegedly received a message from Geoff’s PA that he was involved in a car accident.
It was then that Graeme realized he had been the victim of a scam and lost almost £800,000.
“I hadn’t told my kids. I had basically given my whole life to this person. I pulled down all the blinds and curtains in my house and my neighbor saw what I had done and she called me and she said, ‘Graeme, what’s the problem?'”
At this point in the interview, Graeme’s voice begins to falter, he often pauses and tearfully tries to continue.
“My son came to my house and … it all fell apart and I admitted what I had done. I was a complete and utter mess. I couldn’t believe what I had done.
“I am 77 years old. I’m a mature man, I’ve fought in two wars, I’ve been on assignment in the RAF for 22 years. I’ve flown around the world, I’ve experienced death, and yet I’ve made this gross mistake. It’s very, very difficult to explain.”
Graeme’s daughter Liz says her world was turned upside down when she found out what happened to her father.
“Everyone was totally shocked. When something like this hits you, you just don’t know what to do.
“These people are like thieves, but to me they are worse, they are like murderers because they are actually killing someone’s future life.
“And it’s not just one person, it’s the ripple effect it has on the victim’s family.”
Although Graeme’s case is being investigated by police, it is unlikely there will be any arrests, let alone charges or convictions.
In England and Wales, 4.6 million people are affected by fraud every year and around 700,000 more will suffer deeply, according to an October 2021 report by the Victim’s Commissioner.
According to the report, fraud accounts for 39% of all crime.
However, a 2021 report by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate for Police, Fire and Rescue Services on how police deal with fraud concluded “too many victims are still being disserviced and being denied justice”.
That report states that only 2% of police resources are devoted to fraud, with fewer than 8,000 prosecutions in 2019.
Liz says the reason she and her father decided to speak out is to try to warn others about how dangerous cheating can be.
“It’s like we’ve been living a different life since February 8th. I cannot tell you how overwhelming this is and how much it has taken on the family.
“So I just want everyone to be aware of the bad people out there and how easily people who don’t believe they are vulnerable can succumb to that and be nurtured by those people.
“It’s heartbreaking and I wouldn’t wish that on anyone.”
Of the nearly £800,000 Graeme stole, most of that money was transferred from two accounts – one at Santander and one at Barclays.
Barclays said they sympathize with Graeme but cannot be held liable in this case so they have informed Graeme he can lodge his complaint with the Financial Ombudsman Service.
Santander informed us that they also sympathize and are investigating the case.
The quick home sale company that bought Graeme’s house is called Good Move.
We asked them a series of questions, including whether they would be okay with putting the completion of the purchase of Graeme’s house on hold pending the police investigation.
They did not answer any of our questions and did not consider it appropriate to comment further on the matter in the event of possible court proceedings at a later date.
You can hear more of this story on BBC Radio 4’s Money Box podcast by clicking on it here.
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