Robert Hendy-Freegard

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Robert Hendy-Freegard (* 1. March 1971 ) is a British barman , car salesman, conman and fraudster , posing as a MI5 spent -Agent and brought several people to fear of assassination by the IRA to go into hiding.

Earlier life

He was born on March 1, 1971 under the name Robert Freegard in Hodthorpe , a small town near Whitwell in Derbyshire . Without a school leaving certificate, he completed an apprenticeship as a carpenter. He had his first steadfast relationship with a woman when he was twenty, but it left him after he stole from her. After the breakup, he went after his ex-girlfriend for a while, planning to kidnap and abuse her. As a result, he was arrested by the police and subsequently had to stay away from his former girlfriend. He later found a job as a bartender in a pub in Newport , Shropshire , where he met his first victims.

His methods

Robert Freegard met his victims at social events, as customers in the pub or at car sales. He revealed to his victims his alleged role as an undercover agent for the British secret service MI5 , the Special Branch or Scotland Yard . His job was to monitor the IRA. In this way he was able to win over the victims, take away their money and make them follow his instructions. He asked them to cut off their contacts with family and friends. They had to take tests to prove their allegiance and, at his request, sometimes lived alone in poor conditions. He made five women believe that he would marry them. Initially, some of the victims refused to cooperate with the police, as Robert Freegard told his victims that the police officers were double agents or MI5 agents who were conducting further loyalty tests.

First victim

1992 Robert Freegard (worked in the pub "The Swan" English. "The Swan") in Newport, Shropshire. There he made friends with Maria Hendy, Sarah Smith and John Atkinson, all of whom studied agriculture at Harper Adams College in Edgmond , Shropshire. First, Freegard told John Atkinson that he was an undercover MI5 investigating an IRA cell at the college. He got John Atkinson to let him beat him as proof of his devotion and toughness. In addition, Robert Freegard convinced him to behave grotesque at the university, on the one hand to prove his devotion and on the other hand to lose the bond with his friends. Robert Freegard later told him that his cover had been blown and that both of them had to hide underground. Maria Hendy and Sarah Smith told Robert Freegard that John Atkinson had cancer . He was able to persuade the two women to accompany him and John Atkinson on a "farewell trip" across England. Later he also let Maria Hendy and Sarah Smith in on his alleged circumstances. Robert Freegard informed the women that they should cut off their contacts with their families as they were already in danger due to their connection with him. All three moved to Sheffield and gave all of their money to Robert Freegard. Maria Hendy, Sarah Smith and John Atkinson stayed in an apartment there for five months because Robert Freegard forbade them to leave the house. The group eventually split up. Some took up work and still gave most of their money to Robert Freegard. One of the women became his mistress and gave birth to two daughters. When she found out about other affairs from Robert Freegard and confronted him with them, he beat her up and threatened to kill her. He told her that for security reasons she shouldn't talk to anyone about it. Robert Freegard also convinces the man and his parents to give him £ 300,000.00. For this, the man should receive training. In fact, he made him do bogus assignments and sometimes wait for days in different places for nonexistent meetings. Ultimately, Robert Freegard also told his sister that the IRA was following him and his stories started to fade away.

More seductions

Robert Freegard also seduced the newly wed Chief Secretary Elizabeth Bartholemew, who was looking after his children. He told her he was from MI5 and made her cut off her contacts with family and friends so that the IRA would supposedly not kill her. He also took photos of Elizabeth Bartholemew nude and threatened her to give these photos to her husband if she did not cooperate. Elizabeth Bartholemew had to change her name to Elizabeth Richardson and explain to the relevant authorities that she had been sexually abused as a child. To test her devotion, Elizabeth Bartholemew had to sleep for a few nights at London's Heathrow Airport and on park benches, with Hendy-Freegard temporarily confiscating her warm jacket despite the winter temperatures. She also had to pretend to be one of Jehovah's Witnesses so that Robert Freegard's alleged superiors would marry her. Robert Freegard also led Elizabeth Bartholemew to believe that she was under constant surveillance and that a sniper had once watched her home. He also got Elizabeth Richardson to take out loans so she might be able to pay off her debts.

In 2000, Robert Freegard met attorney Caroline Cowper, who was a customer at the auto dealership in Chiswick , West London. He helped her exchange a vehicle, pocketed the difference between the purchase prices and asked for even more money. Robert Freegard received additional money from Caroline Cowper on claims of running a leasing deal with her. He also stole £ 14,000.00 from her building society account. The two became a couple and went on vacation all over the world. Eventually they got engaged; however, her family took action against the engagement. When she did not receive the leased car, Robert Freegard told Caroline Cowper that the Polish mafia owned it.

In 2002, Robert Freegard seduced the American child psychologist Kimberley Adams with a story according to which he was infiltrated into a criminal network and killed a criminal who threatened to expose him. He told Kimberley Adams that he was going to marry her. In return, he made the condition that she would also become an agent and cut off contact with her family. With her, too, he initiated loyalty tests and changed her identity. He also urged Kimberley Adams to kill her son and claimed to have been commissioned to kill them both. Robert Freegard told Kimberley Adams that they were going to be moving into a lighthouse . When she refused to live there, he asked for £ 80,000.00 to reimburse the alleged "training fee" to the state, with which everything had already been arranged. Kimberley Adams got the money from her father as payment for an allegedly spy training. For this reason, Kimberley Adams also spent three weeks "hidden" in a bathroom in which she was locked by Robert Freegard.

Other victims

In another case, Robert Freegard convinced Simon Young, a jeweler in Sheffield , to give Sarah Smith a room for a while. Later he also tried to recruit Simon Young for "the organization". He also sent Simon Young on supposed missions for the purpose of training. For example, he sent him to London and gave him strict instructions on what mode of transport to use, that he should buy a can opener in a particular shop and give it to a particular man in a particular place. After Simon Young's return, Robert Freegard was overly amused by his reports of the trip. Simon Young became suspicious and asked to see Robert Freegard's manager. But no one appeared at the scheduled meeting.

Robert Freegard also convinced the Polish managing director Renata Kister that he was watching someone at the car dealership in Sheffield and persuaded her to buy a better vehicle. He sold the vehicle on his own account and kept the money. Robert Freegard also got his victim to borrow £ 15,000.00 for him. In addition, he requested another room for Sarah Smith, who was allegedly under a witness protection program. In order for the two women not to speak to each other, Robert Freegard told that Sarah Smith was Spanish. She, in turn, was instructed to pretend she didn't speak a word of English.

Leslie Gardner in Newcastle , whom he met at a nightclub, told Robert Freegard that he needed money to ransom IRA killers who were released after the Good Friday Agreement . She gave him £ 16,000.00 over six years. He also sold Leslie Gardner's vehicle and in this case also kept the money.

Arrest and conviction

In 2002, Scotland Yard and the FBI organized a raid. First, the FBI tapped the phone of the American child psychologist's parents. Their mother told Robert Hendy-Freegard that she would give him £ 10,000.00, but only in person. Robert Freegard met his mother at Heathrow Airport in London, where the police arrested him. Robert Hendy-Freegard denied all allegations, claiming they were part of a conspiracy against him, and continued his stories in the subsequent trial.

On June 23, 2005, after an eight month trial, the court convicted Robert Hendy-Freegard of two abductions , ten thefts and eight frauds. He received a life sentence on September 6, 2005. The police doubt that all of the victims were discovered.

List of victims

media

The case of Robert Freegard was in a television documentary of BBC (called "The Spy Who destroyed my life," English. "The Spy who stole my Life"), respectively.

The author of the documentary, Kate Snell, wrote the autobiographical report "Deceived: A True Story" with Hendy-Freegard's victim Sarah Smith (2008, ISBN 978-0752893266 )

The writer Tina Uebel based her novel "The Truth About Frankie" Verlag CHBeck (2009), ISBN 978-3-406-59073-3 on the Robert Hendy-Freegard case.

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Hendy-Freegard, Robert
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British barman , car salesman , conman and fraudster
DATE OF BIRTH March 1, 1971