Serial Betting Scammer and Fraudster Arrested in Queensland
Author:
Jacob McKenzie
Professional con-artist, serial fraudster and betting scam architect Peter Foster has been running multi-million dollar scams across Asia and Oceania for years. Local law enforcement has been monitoring his movements for the past month, and this week they finally swooped in and got their man whilst he walked along a beach with his two dogs in Port Douglas.
Paul Foster was arrested this week in Port Douglas following weeks long investigation, where has tailed by private investigators following reports from Asia his company Sports Predictions was leading an international betting scam. ?StreetTalkSavvy/Pixabay
A true career criminal, Paul Foster has spent decades running international frauds, with the majority aimed at sports betting. Having spent years of his life behind bars in Australia, Britain, United States, and Vanuatu, this criminal is a serial con-artist who has seemingly not learned his lesson from all the time spent in incarceration.
The arrest was a meticulously planned event, as two detectives who had been covertly monitoring Peter Foster for about a month pretended to be morning joggers running up the beach. Running along the sand in training gear the two law enforcement officers apprehended Foster as he walked his Jack Russel dogs along the same route he took each day.
Foster Ran Betting Scams Through His Company; Sport Predictions Ltd
The scam was facilitated through a front company established by Paul Foster, Sport Predictions Ltd claimed to provide expert tipping and advice to gamblers on upcoming matches. Clients were encouraged to send money to the company which would then apparently be used by experts, with returns being yielded back to the player. However, the alleged bets were never placed, and the funds were stolen by Paul Foster and laundered through a complex network of fake companies in NSW.
The New South Wales Police Department has indicated that they will be attempting to extradite Paul Foster to their jurisdiction. If the extradition request is successful he is facing multiple frauds and money laundering charges.
Investigators first became aware of Paul Foster’s whereabouts last month after they received complaints from a businessman in Asia who claimed he had lost around $2 million worth of Bitcoin after paying it the Sports Predictions. A private investigatory firm IFW Global was hired to locate the scam artist and had been tailing him for several weeks before handing over his whereabouts to local law enforcement officers.
The private investigator leading the hunt was Ken Gamble of IFW Global. Mr. Gamble spent several weeks gathering data and information on the daily activities of the suspect, whilst also finding out information on the company at the center of the fraud Sports Predictions. The investigator said the company and its website was structured in a way as to conceal the true owner of the firm, and hide important information that could be used to unravel the continued viability of the scam.
The private investigators quickly learned that Paul Foster was in the market for a multi-million dollar yacht, suggesting he might soon leave Australia for good. The information gathered through the months-long tailing was organized and passed on the police, they quickly decided to make a move on the con-artist after obtaining a warrant for his arrest.
Police raided the property of Paul Foster after his arrest and seized multiple computers and documents believed to tie him to the fraud and money laundering activities. Foster now faces an extradition hearing in court this Friday to determine in which state he will be tried against the charges.
A Man Living Life on the Run
For the past two decades Paul Foster has been running scams across the world, no stranger to living life on the run, he has had multiple run-ins with the law. The same private investigation firm IFW Global was hired back in 2014 to track him down in Ewingsdale near Byron Bay.
Cases such as Paul Foster are certainly not improving the case for online gambling legalization in Australia. Critics of a change in the law often cite cases of fraud and money laundering as primary reasons for obstructing an improvement to the legal framework.
It was a similar case back then as it is now, Foster had been evading authorities over his involvement and management of an international gambling syndicate Sports Trading Club. The scheme stole money from clients and faked betting slips to attract investment from unwitting sports betting enthusiasts looking for premium tips. It came crashing down in a highly-publicized bust as he was chased through his property by a film crew and law enforcement officers tackling him into a bush.
A lifelong scam-artist, Paul Foster has run multiple cons throughout his life including fake weight loss products, multiple gambling schemes, and most notoriously procuring property at a heavily discounted rate for Cherie Blair. The unlikely relationship with the wife of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair was a huge political scandal eternally coined Cherigate.
The life of a man living on the run has clearly not been a pleasant one, made all the more difficult now that he has a publicized reputation for putrid criminality. New revelations concerning the explosive past of Paul Foster are expected to be revealed in a new podcast featuring a family friend, the recordings cover much of his personal life including family arguments over millions of dollars and reports that he has abandoned two of his children.
