Grenfell Tower fraudster admits making up family deaths

Anh Nhu Nguyen is a serial conman claimed his wife and son were killed in the Grenfell Tower fire, has now admitted he made it up to try and claim about £12,500 from funds meant for victims.

After two weeks he got given the money by charities and Kensington and Chelsea Council.

He was discovered to be fake when several different flat numbers he gave did not exist and one where a real victim lived.

Nguyen even posed as a victim of the fire and shook the Prince of Wales’ hand when he visited a relief centre set up in the wake of the disaster.

The 52-year-old, of Beckenham, south-east London, pleaded guilty at Southwark Crown Court on Thursday.

He admitted two counts of fraud by false representation and one count of making an untrue statement for the purpose of obtaining a passport.

Nguyen who was born in Vietnam, showed no emotion as he entered his pleas through a translator.

He has been in the UK since the 1980s and is a British citizen and has 17 aliases.

He will be sentenced on 15 December.

Elizabeth Campbell, leader of Kensington and Chelsea Council, said: “It is disgraceful.

“Fraud on any level directly and negatively impacts our efforts to give crucial help and support to the victims and survivors of the fire.”