Dani Dyer’s boyfriend Sammy Kimmence jailed for scamming pensioners out of almost £34,000
The boyfriend of Love Island star Dani Dyer has been jailed for 42 months after he pleaded guilty to defrauding two men out of almost £34,000.
Sammy Kimmence, from Rayleigh in Essex, took cash from two elderly men between 2016 and 2018, telling them he would invest it in horse racing bets on their behalf – but he instead spent the money on clearing his debts and funding his lifestyle.
Kimmence, 25, pleaded guilty to four counts of fraud against Peter Martin, of Havant, Hampshire, who died last year at the age of 91, and totalled nearly £26,000.
Kimmence has a son with Love Island star Dani Dyer
He also pleaded guilty to a fifth charge against Peter Haynes, 81, from Okehampton in Devon, which came to £7,927.
Sentencing the defendant at Portsmouth Crown Court, Judge Timothy Mousley QC said the scam had been an “abuse of trust”, particularly against Mr Martin, who had considered Kimmence to be his friend.
He added: “You didn’t show any remorse immediately and I do not consider any remorse to be profound.”
Kimmence came into contact with the two men while working in administration and sales for a company called Equine Global Sports Limited, which placed bets on behalf of its clients, prosecutor Michael Mason said.
However, the company ceased trading, and Kimmence pretended to work for a new company, S&S Trading Ltd, and continued to offer to make bets on behalf of the two men.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) say that instead of placing bets, Kimmence used the cash to pay off his overdraft, stay in an Ibiza hotel, eat out at restaurants and buy clothes.
Mr Mason said: “This is a very unpleasant fraud against two men who Mr Kimmence deliberately targeted.
Subscribe to the Backstage podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Spreaker
“He targeted them because they were old, vulnerable and somewhat isolated. This wasn’t something he migrated to, this was something he planned.”
In a statement read to court, Mr Haynes, an aircraft engineer and RAF veteran, said: “All the savings I have accrued over my working life have been wiped out, my bank account shows zero, I am sick with worry.”
Kimmence had visited both lots of his victims and persuaded Mr Martin to hand over online banking details and bank cards, Mr Mason added.
He said, speaking of Mr Martin: “He ceded financial control to Mr Kimmence, it’s akin to the fox getting the keys to the chicken pen.”
A statement made by Mr Martin said: “I have been left at times very stressed over money, having given thousands to Sammy who I thought was investing it for me.”
Craig Harris, defending Kimmence, said: “He was living above his means, he found himself surrounded by what he perceived to be the glitz and glamour of the City and financial services workers and they would take him out to Club 195, nightclubs, and well-regarded bar establishments.
“And when the time came for him to show willingness to engage in this type of frivolity, he did.”
The court also heard that Kimmence would indulge in alcohol and cocaine.
Because of legal proceedings against him, Kimmence had lost his job as a City trader, according to Mr Harris, and was intending to retrain as a quantity surveyor.
Mr Harris added that Kimmence had saved up £10,000 to repay his victims.
Simon Clark, CPS Wessex senior crown prosecutor, said: “Kimmence acted despicably when he duped his former clients into believing that he had set up a new company with which they could safely invest their money.”
Kimmence is the father of Dyer’s child, Santiago, who was born on 23 January this year.
Entertainment
‘I’m shocked at how fragile I am still’: Cumberbatch and Colman on protecting their sanity from perils of social media
Actor Benedict Cumberbatch says he’s shocked at how “fragile” he still is – despite years in the spotlight and success in the industry.
It might seem like the Doctor Strange star and The Crown actress Olivia Colman have it all when it comes to money and success – but they are also human like the rest of us.
The pair lead the cast of new satirical black comedy The Roses, which sees picture-perfect couple Ivy and Theo Rose – a rising star chef and ambitious architect – raise their two children in California, while chasing their own dreams.
‘I am shocked at how fragile I am’
But behind its dark humour and comic language, the film also looks at the realities of power imbalance, insecurity and wounded pride – in even the strongest of relationships.
And 49-year-old Cumberbatch – whose character faces a major setback in his career – tells Sky News that in real life the glare of social media only intensifies those type of situations.
“I am shocked at how fragile I am still.
“I don’t go anywhere near it [social media] because of that.
“It’s like walking into a place where people want to marry you or kill you. Those extremes.
“I think we will get to a stage, a corporate culture that’s now manifested around it where people are obliged to do that in order to sell their lives, and therefore their brand and what they do for a living.”
Co-star Colman – who’s long-shunned the online world – agrees.
Cumberbatch and Colman in The Roses. Pic: Jaap Buitendijk/ Searchlight Pictures
Read more from Sky News:
Taylor Swift announces engagement to Travis Kelce – and reveals huge ring
Bridgerton creator on ‘bizarre’ criticism – Watch
“I’m afraid I am very thin-skinned.
“I don’t look at any of it. My husband will look at a review and if it’s nice he’ll show me – but if it’s anything mean he knows to just go ‘don’t look – don’t look.’
“You just have to learn to be thicker-skinned.
“But actually, I think we need people who are sensitive and kind.”
‘Don’t do it… delete it all’
Colman – now 51, and whose leading role in The Favourite bagged her an Academy Award in 2019 – says no amount of experience and success can shield her from criticism.
“My advice to a young’un – sort of dipping their toe into the world of social media for the first time is absolutely don’t do it.
“Delete it all. If you want a happy life, don’t have any of it. I’ve never had it.”
The movie – directed by Meet The Parents’ Jay Roach with The Favourite screenwriter Tony McNamara – also calls into question the notion of success – asking, is it really possible to have it all?
Or is sacrifice inevitable when it comes to spinning the plates of a high-flying career, marriage and parenthood?
Cumberbatch admits “you can’t do it all without there being a cost”.
“You just have to weigh up what those balances are,” he adds.
Colman says “there are I suppose little sacrifices along the way” – from both sides of a relationship.
The comedy drama offers a fresh take on Warren Adler’s novel The War Of The Roses – and the 1989 hit film adaptation- starring Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner.
Colman and Cumberbatch – both producers on the film – insist they weren’t daunted by that though.
“We wanted to find a project to do together, and we have utter respect for the iconic status of the film and book,” explains Cumberbatch.
“Hopefully this will have its own place in the culture – it’s very different, it’s not a remake – it’s a reimagined jumping-on point.”
“But beyond that, it’s very different,” adds Colman.
Former Doctor Who Ncuti Gatwa and Barbie’s Kate McKinnon also form the cast.
The Roses is out in UK cinemas now.
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports1 year agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Sports2 years agoButton battles heat exhaustion in NASCAR debut
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment11 months agoHere are the best electric bikes you can buy at every price level in October 2024