Mark Makowski, Locksmith Who Conned Customers, Jailed And Fined £700,000

PA/The Huffington Post UK  |  Posted: 3/05/2012 15:37 Updated: 3/05/2012 15:37

Locksmith
Makowski deliberately used expensive, unnecessary techniques in order to make more money

A rogue locksmith has been ordered to pay £700,000 following a five-year investigation into his criminal operation.

Mark Makowski, the former director of Pronto Locks Limited, unnecessarily drilled through locks when a normal locksmith's method of entry could have been used, then charged "exorbitant" prices for new locks to be fitted for vulnerable customers who had been locked out of their homes, Westminster Council in London said.

A five-year joint investigation by Westminster trading standards and Scambusters began in 2007 following complaints from customers who had been "duped" when employing Pronto Locks to regain entry to their homes.

He also fraudulently obtained chip and pin payment devices from Barclays Bank to present to customers who did not have cash on hand to pay for his services.

Makowski, who was given a four-year prison sentence in 2010 for 15 fraud offences, was sentenced at the Old Bailey on Monday and ordered to pay £703,349.82 under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002.

Westminster Council head of trading standards Sue Jones said: "I am delighted with the outcome of this confiscation hearing and that Mr Makowski has been deprived of the wealth he amassed through his criminal conduct.

"Trading standards will always consider using the Proceeds of Crime Act in appropriate criminal cases in order to confiscate criminally-derived assets."

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06:49 AM on 05/04/2012
If this piece of vermin was given four years imprisonment in 2010, how was he around to carry out these crimes?
05:07 AM on 05/04/2012
What happened to surnames like Smith and other traditional British names? Most people named in the news nowadays are all but unprenouncable.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
chrisctpaul
Things can only get better
10:00 PM on 05/03/2012
Its all well and good fining him, but getting the money will likely be very difficult.

No doubt he will have very few assets in his name, its a very similar situation when some people go bankrupt, go bust owing lots of money, but they still manage to keep their luxury homes...
09:46 PM on 05/03/2012
The theory , "sounds like a nice cheap tradesman going by the name ",
then he got his dril out , then he got his drill out , tra ,la ,la, la ooh tra la la ............ah bugger !
06:58 PM on 05/03/2012
My old man was a cowboy, cowboy, terrible at moving cows..
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06:35 PM on 05/03/2012
A locksmith in jail now that would be a useful thing to learn in these crime universities
05:30 PM on 05/03/2012
Took them... five years... five years to catch a locksmith, we had a world war in that time. And they think they done well, six cases like that and the civil servants will be retired. Shocking.
05:17 PM on 05/03/2012
this is a good start to paying off the national debt HOWEVER once youve paid the legal costs and solicitors fees by my reconing we should have £1.38p left.... ah well only another 50 years left then
04:43 PM on 05/03/2012
Give back every penny to the people he ripped off. These people just don't have any morals. Scurge of society.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
mickbono
huff is crap
04:20 PM on 05/03/2012
if he is not english he wants to be deported after his sentance .
06:39 PM on 05/03/2012
You need to learn how to use the English language correctly!

Your sentance [sic] does not make any sense.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
mickbono
huff is crap
10:25 PM on 05/03/2012
ohhhhhhhh sally picky have you not got anything better to do than pick fault on a little spelling mistake ? or are you little mrs ms miss perfect
06:57 PM on 05/03/2012
He is English but lets' get rid of him anyway..Australia seems a decent place..
07:30 PM on 05/03/2012
hey i aint conned no one but youre welcome to pay for me to go to australia
04:12 PM on 05/03/2012
Its about time these scummy people were made to pay back take everything from them, that a make them think twice now how about cowboy builders