A serial fraudster who targeted people selling valuables online, including two victims in Wrexham, has been jailed for two years.
Edward McDonagh, 24, of Queen Victoria Street, Blackburn, was sentenced at Caernarfon Crown Court after admitting:
- theft from another person
- multiple counts of fraud by misrepresentation
Recorder John Philpotts told him: “You are a fraudster and a thoroughly dishonest man.”
How the scam worked
Using a range of aliases, McDonagh contacted people who had put items up for sale on the internet and arranged to meet them. On some occasions he arrived with another man.
Prosecuting, Michael Stables told the court that McDonagh would hold up a banking app that seemed to show a payment going through. The money never reached any of the victims’ accounts. One victim said they had seen £49,000 in his bank account.
Anyone who questioned him faced threats and intimidation before he left with their property, the court heard.
The victims
The offences took place over almost three years, in towns and cities across England and Wales:
- February 2022, Brighton: McDonagh took a Chanel handbag that Nabaa Nimer had advertised for £2,300. The court heard he used “minor violence” to get it.
- The next morning, Aldingbourne: He took an iPad listed for £800 from Jeremy Scott. Members of Mr Scott’s family wrote down McDonagh’s registration before he left.
- June 2023, Preston: After meeting and intimidating Andrew Greenbank, he defrauded him of a Rolex watch valued at £23,500. Mr Greenbank later found CCTV footage of the transaction.
- December 2024, Wrexham: Danielle Wallace and Thomas Burrows were defrauded of mobile phones, which the court heard were both “valuable items”.
Tracked down
One of the victims did their own research, which also helped identify McDonagh. He was later found in the USA and was extradited in July 2026.
The court heard he has 26 previous convictions for 53 offences, including fraud, theft and similar offences.
Defence
Stephen McNally, defending, said McDonagh had pleaded guilty and was using his time in prison constructively. He said McDonagh held “enhanced prisoner status”.
Sentencing
The judge said McDonagh’s actions had a “serious impact” on his victims. As well as the two-year prison sentence, the court made compensation orders for the victims, and McDonagh must also pay a statutory surcharge.
