Felix Vossen, who went on the run after scamming family and friends out of millions, has been jailed in Switzerland
A film producer who went on the run after conning friends, family and investors out of millions has been jailed in Switzerland.
Felix Vossen was an heir to a textile fortune and maths genius who worked on The Sweeney starring Ray Winstone and Miss You Already with Drew Barrymore.
But he disappeared from London after investors poured millions in planned films and was eventually arrested with 11 mobile phones and £100,000 in cash in Spain.
After he was extradited to Switzerland, the 43-year-old conman was jailed for six years by a court in Zurich after he admitted fraud, forgery and money laundering.
But despite his conviction, his British investors are still unable to get back the money they invested, which could top £45million, The Times reported today.
Vossen, who was educated in Switzerland before moving to London, went missing in March 2015.
Vossen disappeared from his London home after convincing friends to plough millions into films
It later emerged he had ripped off at least 30 victims by offering returns of up to 20 per cent on future films.
One victim, Tom Trotter, said after his disappearance: ‘What makes what he did so insidiously evil is that almost all of his victims were his friends… He not only stole our money, but also our faith in human nature.’
Another victim Simon Gargette, a London-based director of TV commercials, said at the time: ‘He’s clearly a sociopath who drew people in with his charm.’
When he was eventually arrested in Spain, he was found with a Greek driving licence, an Italian identity card and a quantity of cash in different currencies.
Police found fake French, Greek and Dutch passports when they searched his City apartment. Money, including 82,310 in Swiss francs, 13,010 in Sterling and 5,905 in Euros was also discovered, it was reported at the time.
He had worked on a number of films, including The Sweeney featuring Ray Winstone