A man who described himself as the “Kardashian of Cheshire” and admitted conning people out of thousands of pounds, has been jailed for six years.
Jack Watkin was on trial facing six counts of fraud, worth almost £200,000, when he changed his mind and pleaded guilty on day two at Chester Crown Court back in June. The jury had heard he gained his victims’ trust with an “outward facade of a glamorous and luxurious lifestyle”.
Watkin, who appeared in Channel 4 documentary Rich Kids Of Instagram in 2016, spent his money in Harrods and staying in five-star London hotel The Dorchester, where he had a bill of more than £100,000, police said. He was used to luxury yacht trips, Christian Louboutin’s, and shopping for flash cars such as a Rolls Royce.
But when his parents split up, he was no longer able to access the bank of mum and dad. The influencer struggled to let the idea of being the son of a millionaire go. He was bankrupt and unemployed so decided to rip off his friends, family and associates in a botched high-end scam.
He was good at playing the part of a fashionista socialite, so he persuaded people to invest in a supposed lucrative business buying and selling exclusive Hermès handbags. But his victims, many who are believed to be unaccounted for, were left out of pocket after he failed to hold up to his end of the scheme.
One of his victims, Christine Colbert, who is the owner of a boutique called Dress Cheshire, said: “My little shop was a magnet for him of bags and a potential investment opportunity. He had handbags of mine he had not returned and money (for bags) he had not returned.” She was forced to reimburse one customer with £17,000 of her own money for a bag Watkin had taken for a potential sale and never gave back.
“He paid me back little bits of money but by that time I knew I was into £100,000. I think he’s a complete loner who buys his own lies. He’s writing a history in his own head and he doesn’t think there’s anything wrong with living his life with other people’s money. He’s a narcissist. As far as he’s concerned, they can afford it and they will carry on. He’s chosen his victims very carefully, a lot of them of such wealth that I know they have just written this off. It’s not even a £500,000 fraud. He’s had millions of pounds.”
Speaking outside court this summer, victim Ms Colbert said she had been “hugely betrayed” by 26-year-old Watkin, but she was pleased with the outcome. She said: “I have absolutely no idea what is in his mind and what he thought. I don’t think he’s worked a day in his life. He’s rewritten history in his own mind and that’s a fantasy world that he lives in. He thinks it’s OK to live off other people’s money.”
Detective Constable Gareth Yates said: “Jack Watkin is a male who has built a lifestyle on social media, on Instagram, and that lifestyle is one of exuberance. So, if anyone was to look at that profile, you would see fancy hotels, luxury cars, designer clothing, and he created a following, and that following allowed him to create a ruse to be the fraudster we now know, and convicted fraudster.”
He added: “He often described himself as the Kardashian of Cheshire. What my understanding from that would be is that he is an individual of wealth and has the ability to purchase wealthy items. As a result of that he then gets notoriety, from an Instagram perspective, followers, people. People follow him with the desire to be him.”
Opening the trial on Monday, Matthew Kerruish-Jones, prosecuting, said: “The defendant put forward the outward facade of a glamorous and luxurious lifestyle. This, it seems, engendered trust and led a number of individuals to loan him large sums of money on the promise of either a financial return, or luxury items. Neither of which materialised.”
He said complainants would be left “out of pocket for large sums of money”. He added: “The defendant would make excuses and avoid the complainants, all the while spending large sums of money on maintaining his seemingly lavish lifestyle.”
Watkin was said to have told victims their money would be used to buy Hermes handbags, which were then to be sold on for a profit. The jury was told bag purchases from Hermes were only allowed to select registered customers and, because of their exclusivity, the bags often attracted a value far in excess of their original price when resold.
Watkin’s victims included friend Hannah Jakes, who he admitted defrauding of £98,500, and Ms Colbert, owner of Dress Cheshire, who was defrauded of £43,800. He also defrauded his father, Jason Watkin, of £24,500. The court heard Mr Watkin was not repaid, but could see from social media his son was “spending lavishly on his lifestyle”.
Watkin also admitted fraud of more than £13,000 on James Irlam, who was told by Watkin he had a personal relationship with the director of Hermes and was able to source handbags. Andor Farkas, a barman at Harrods, was victim of a £14,000 fraud and had believed Watkin, a regular customer, was a millionaire, the court heard.
Watkin also pleaded guilty to the £840 fraud of Naheem Akhtar, who the court heard had given Watkin the money for a pair of Lora Piana shoes which he never received.
A further count of fraud and two counts of theft were ordered to lie on file. During the investigation detectives also found indecent images on his mobile phone for which he was found guilty at a previous hearing for possession of indecent images, extreme pornography and prohibited images.
The phone that was seized on his first arrest in March 2024 had 637 indecent images, and a further 274 category A indecent images of children. Officers also found he made 307 category B indecent images of children, 158 category C indecent images of children, possessed six extreme pornographic images of animals, and five prohibited images of children.
On his second arrest, when he was met at Macclesfield train station by officers in October 2024, his new phone was forensically downloaded and this had five category B and two category C indecent images of children as well as five category B indecent images of children. They also found he had made two category C indecent images of children.