Con man ‘fleeced restaurateur of £81,000’

A CON MAN tricked a Mayfair restaurateur into handing over £81,000 during a scam in which he dined with former England football captain John Terry, a court heard.

Faisal Madani, 56, a self-styled fixer who has served time for fraud, is accused of conning Ammar Wafaie, 64, helped by his associate Shane Martin. Madani was a regular at Mr Wafaie’s Lebanese Al Sultan restaurant and often dined there with footballers, including Terry, the Old Bailey heard.

Mr Wafaie said Madani helped him with a cash flow problem. He introduced him to Martin, 56, and the pair struck a deal to pay his VAT bill, the court heard, in return for half of the money up front, with the rest to be paid off in instalments. “Almost nine months later I was surprised and shocked as I had the bailiffs outside my door requesting £159,000,” Mr Wafaie said.

Madani, of Colchester, Essex, and Martin, of Tarporeley, Cheshire, deny fraud and consiracy to defraud. The men are on bail and the trial continues.