Rich kid of Instagram jailed after conning friends and family out of £200k, including his own dad

The self-declared “Kardashian of Cheshire”, whose actual name is Jack Watkin, has been jailed after earlier pleading guilty to six counts of fraud.

In 2016, Jack Watkin took part in Channel 4’s Rich Kids of Instagram, a reality TV show about influencers with more money than sense. He’d spent years cultivating an image of sophistication on Instagram, from designer hotels to pricey clothing items, but it all turned out to be fabricated. Jack claimed to be a luxury fashion reseller, specifically for Hermès handbags, but in reality, he was using the swindled cash to fund his fake, lavish lifestyle.

Credit: Cheshire Constabulary

Jack Watkin was sentenced to six years

After pleading guilty to the crimes back in June, Jack Watkin appeared in court on Monday, where he was sentenced to six years behind bars for his handbag scam.

Prosecutor Matthew Kerruish-Jones argued: “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.”

His victims included his own friend Hannah Jakes, who lost £98,500, and his dad, Jason Watkin, who lost £24,500 to the handbag scam. Another person who was duped by his followers and deliberately cultivated Instagram was Christine Colbert, who owns a clothing company in Cheshire.

Credit: Cheshire Constabulary

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“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,” she said, as per The Mirror.

James Irlam, who believed that Jack had a personal relationship with Hermès, was defrauded of £13,000, Harrods barman Andor Farkas of £14,00, and Naheem Akhtar of £840.

Using the money he conned out of people, Jack Watkin was a regular customer of Harrods and five-star hotels like The Dorchester, where he racked up a bill of £100,000. Earlier this year, he was also convicted of nine offences relating to indecent images of children found on his phone.

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Featured image credit: Cheshire Constabulary