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Five more years in jail for fraudster who targeted Harrogate man

Tuesday, 22 September 2026 09:09

Jailed: Sukhdev Singh, 78, systematically exploited a Harrogate man.

A fraudster who stole a vulnerable Harrogate man’s home has been jailed for a further five years after failing to pay a confiscation order.

Former chartered accountant Sukhdev Singh, 78, of Chelwood Drive in Leeds, was originally sentenced to more than five years in prison for fraud in 2022.

York Crown Court heard he had systematically exploited the victim, who had significant disabilities, fraudulently acquiring his mortgage-free home valued at £500,000.

Singh also transferred more than £34,000 from the man’s Gibraltar savings account and attempted to gain control of a property he owned in Spain.

He had been a business associate of the victim’s father in the 1980s and contacted the man after his parents had died, offering to help him.

A subsequent North Yorkshire Police investigation found Singh had benefited from criminal conduct totalling £1.19 million and had available assets worth £490,284.98.

On 25th August 2025, York Crown Court ordered him to pay the available amount within three months or face a further five-year prison term.

Despite unsuccessful appeals and repeated extensions, Singh made no payment towards the order.

At Leeds Magistrates’ Court on 27th August 2026, he again refused to accept responsibility for his offending or pay the amount owed.

The court activated the five-year default sentence and Singh was returned to prison.

Ian Sharp, from North Yorkshire Police’s Economic Crime Unit, said:

“We will relentlessly pursue individuals in relation to the proceeds of their crimes. In this case, enforcement action to recover the outstanding debt will continue.”

The victim died earlier this year before receiving the compensation he was due from the confiscation proceedings.

His estate is expected to receive the funds once they are recovered.

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