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.
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“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.
Samantha Davis, the wife of Star Wars and Harry Potter actor Warwick Davis, has died aged 53.
Samantha co-founded the dwarfism charity Little People UK and featured in the final Harry Potter film, alongside Warwick.
Warwick announced the news in a statement shared to the BBC, revealing she had died on 24 March.
“Her passing has left a huge hole in our lives as a family. I miss her hugs.
“She was a unique character, always seeing the sunny side of life she had a wicked sense of humour and always laughed at my bad jokes.”
He added that she was his “most trusted confidant and an ardent supporter of everything I did in my career”.
Their two children together, Annabelle and Harrison, also paid tribute to their mother, saying: “Her love and happiness carried us through our whole lives.
“Mum is our best friend and we’re honoured to have received a love like hers.”
The couple met on the set of George Lucas’s film Willow and married three years later in 1991.
(L-R) Harrison Davis, Warwick Davis, Samantha Davis and Annabelle Davis at the screening of Disney+ series Willow in 2022. Pic: PA
Samantha also played a goblin in Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows: Part 2 while her husband played both Professor Flitwick and the goblin Griphook in all eight films in the franchise.
Annabelle, 27, has followed in her parents’ acting footsteps, starring in CBBC’s The Dumping Ground and Channel 4 soap Hollyoaks.
Warwick starred as the titular hero Willow Ufgood in the 1988 original film Willow and reprised the role for the 2022 sequel.
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He also played several characters in the Star Wars film series.
Samantha and Warwick co-founded Little People UK in 2012 to help individuals with dwarfism and their families.
Entertainment
New ‘Drake song’ causes confusion as listeners question whether AI or the rapper is behind it
A new ‘leaked’ song thought to be by Drake is causing confusion among fans, with some questioning whether it is him or an AI clone.
The new song appeared on the internet over the weekend, supposedy after being leaked.
In it, the Canadian rapper seems to hit out at other musicians including Kendrick Lamar and Metro Boomin.
However, fans aren’t sure if it is actually him.
“This is clearly AI,” posted one user on X.
The song hasn’t been officially released and some listeners say they can hear small glitches in his vocal track that suggest it could have been generated by artificial intelligence.
Drake’s AI clone has history.
In 2023, an AI-generated track that recreated the voices of Drake and artist The Weeknd went viral on TikTok.
The song, called Heart On My Sleeve, was created by an artist known as Ghostwriter.
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It racked up more than 230,000 plays on YouTube, with more than 625,000 plays on Spotify, according to industry news website Music Business Worldwide, before it was removed from streaming platforms.
At the time, Universal Music Group, which publishes both artists through Republic Records, said songs like Heart On My Sleeve “represent both a breach of our agreements and a violation of copyright law”.
Drake isn’t helping the current confusion.
He hasn’t claimed the track but has been posting about it on Instagram.
He even posted an AI deepfake of rap producer Metro Boomin in a clip from the 2002 film Drumline, which appears to be a reference to one of the lines in the song, “Metro, shut your h*e ass up and make some drums”.
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Sky News approached Universal Music for confirmation of the song’s authenticity but is yet to receive a response.
Metallica frontman James Hetfield has shared details of his latest tattoo – featuring the ashes of the late Motorhead rocker Lemmy.
Hetfield posted a picture on Metallica‘s Instagram account, showing a new Aces Of Spades inking on his right middle finger in reference to Motorhead’s biggest hit.
The singer and guitarist told the band’s 11 million followers the tattoo is “a salute to my friend and inspiration Mr Lemmy Kilmister”, adding: “Without him, there would be NO Metallica.”
He went on to say: “Black ink mixed with a pinch of his cremation ashes that were so graciously given to me. So now, he is still able to fly the bird at the world.”
Pic: Metallica.com
Lemmy, whose real name was Ian Kilmister, was the founder and frontman of British rock band Motorhead. Formed in the 1970s, the band went on to release more than 20 albums, with hits including Overkill, Iron Fist and Ace Of Spades.
He died in December 2015, just days after being diagnosed with cancer.
Hetfield formed American rock act Metallica with drummer Lars Ulrich in the early 1980s, and the band released their 11th album, 72 Seasons, last year.
They are best known for hits including Enter Sandman, Master Of Puppets, Nothing Else Matters and Until It Sleeps.
‘The most badass tribute’
Hetfield has previously spoken about Motorhead’s influence on Metallica, and in 2022 called for Motorhead to be inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.
“It’s just a nod, a tip of the cap. What does it really mean to be in there? I don’t know. But to some of these bands it might mean the world,” he said in a radio interview.
“With the passing of Lemmy, it’s really, really important for me to see Motorhead acknowledged in that – because there’s no more rock’n’roll person on this planet than Lemmy.”
Many fans commented on his tattoo photo, with one calling the inking “the most badass tribute possible”.
Another said: “RIP Lemmy. This is a wonderful gift!”
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