Paris, Feb 8, (dpa/GNA) – A British conman and serial fraudster was sentenced to six years in prison in France on Friday, for running over two police
officers.
A court in Guéret in central France handed down the sentence on Robert Hendy-Freegard, who also has to pay the officers compensation.
The 53-year-old had already been convicted in the United Kingdom of psychologically manipulating and defrauding women for decades. Several documentaries
were made about his case.
In August 2022, the police went to the man’s home in a small town in the Massif Central, because of irregularities with the dog breeding business he ran
with his partner.
When Hendy-Freegard arrived in his car and was asked for his papers, he accelerated and ran over a male and female officer, seriously injuring one of
them.
He was detained in Belgium after several days on the run.
The convicted man is the subject of the Netflix documentary “The Puppet Master” and the British TV documentary “The Spy Who Stole My Life.”
The films describe how the British man repeatedly claimed to be a secret agent when approaching women, and used threatening scenarios to persuade them
to cut off contact with their families.
Once he had the women under his influence, he is said to have financially exploited them.
According to media reports, the partner living with the convicted man in France had been reported missing in her native Britain for years.
She apparently lived in complete isolation and had no contact with her neighbours.
GNA