A former police officer has recouped a £75,000 investment he put into a company owned by conman Matthew Farr.
Darren Birch lost the sum he paid to Farr’s car repair firm Masco Detailing.
Farr, 37, who was jailed in 2015 for a Scottish green energy scheme in which he used customers’ deposits for gambling and luxury living, offered investors lucrative returns from Masco.
Last month the Sunday Mail revealed Farr, now of Leamington Spa, disappeared, saying the company was in financial difficulty before closing the business, leaving investors out of pocket.
Now Darren has been awarded his money back from his bank after a ruling from the Financial Ombudsman Service.
Darren, of Hinckley, Leicestershire, said: “I’m glad to have the money back but it’s ridiculous I’ve had to go through this while the conman behind it gets away scot-free.”
Masco Detailing Ltd was formed in July 2020 with Farr as sole director. It was based in Worcester before moving to Inkberrow in Worcestershire, then Warwick.
Darren, 38, who has PTSD, retired from Leicestershire Police on health grounds in 2018 and was awarded a £79,000 lump sum from his police pension.
After being pleased with work on his car by Masco, he responded to a Facebook ad to invest in it, promising high dividends.
Darren sent a total of £75,000 to the business between April and August 2021 but, hours before the first dividends were due, Darren said Farr told investors the firm was in difficulty and then closed it.
In September 2021 Darren contacted Starling Bank to say he had been scammed.
When Starling argued the matter was a civil dispute, Darren complained to the Financial Ombudsman, who ordered he should receive a full refund plus interest.
Earlier this month we told how Farr was told to spend a week in jail for failing to appear before a judge presiding over a case involving work not carried out by Masco.
Farr told us: “Customers, investors and readers can learn the real story on the company website (mascodetailing.co.uk) along with instructions on how to receive funds back.”
Starling Bank said: “Starling has refunded the customer in full plus eight per cent interest and has paid them £500 for the distress caused for which we sincerely apologise.”
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