Charity collection fraudsters wore Children In Need Pudsey Bear outfits to con public out of £500,000 in 10-year scam

A gang of fraudsters posed as charity collectors and wore Children In Need Pudsey Bear outfits to cheat kind-hearted members of the public out of more than £500,000 - then splurged their ill-gotten gains to fund luxury lifestyles.

A court heard the brazen scammers set up bogus charity collections at supermarkets across England and Scotland between 2011 and 2021.

They claimed to be collecting for Children In Need, The Children's Society, MIND, Great Ormond Street Hospital and The Christie Fund, and used T-shirts, logos and marketing material they requested from the charities to give the impression they were for real.

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On occasion, a court heard they wore Pudsey Bear outfits which had been bought online, and used email addresses and websites set up to look like legitimate charities.

But despite the years of collections, from the South coast to North of the border, they handed over just a small percentage of the cash to the charities, Preston Crown Court heard.

Prosecutors said that when supermarket staff challenged the gang's fraudsters about the bogus collections, they were told they would lose their jobs or be reported to the national press, reports Lancs Live.

Heading up the gang was convicted conman David Levi, 49, who claimed he ran a legitimate fundraising business and relied on disability benefits and an inheritance from his father to get by. He paid the rent on his Lytham St Annes flat in cash and splashed out on business class flights to Australia and a Hummer vehicles,