Army clerk lied about SAS heroics and cancer in £8k scam
WITH his chest of medals and tales of derring-do, Simon Buckden seemed a man of honour.
The 44-year- old claimed to have served in war zones and worked undercover for the SAS. In reality, he was only an Army clerk who had never seen active service.
But his stories of combat stress and then cancer helped him trick victims into handing over thousands of pounds.
Yesterday the former soldier was jailed for 16 months for six counts of fraud.
Buckden turned himself into a media figure by taking on the challenge of running 100 marathons in 100 weeks to raise awareness of post-traumatic stress – the disorder he claimed to be suffering from.
He then pretended that he was fighting rectal cancer and had kept running in ‘defiance of medical advice’, Leeds Crown Court was told.
His public profile led to him carrying the Olympic torch through the streets of Leeds before the 2012 London Games.
Buckden pocketed more than £8,000 in cash and services by lying about his illnesses. One sympathiser gave him £2,000 for a holiday to help him recover from cancer.
Passing sentence, Judge Christopher Batty told Buckden he was dishonest and manipulative, adding: ‘You insulted every man and woman who has ever worn the uniform of an army.’
He said his cancer fakery had the potential to undermine confidence in charitable organisations.
‘The disrespect you have shown to those who have suffered cancer and to those who have lost their battle with it is quite breathtaking,’ said the judge. ‘You left the Army without decoration and yet you stood proudly at cenotaphs in your SAS beret and an array of medals you bought from the internet.
‘Holding yourself out as a man of honour. It couldn’t have been further from the truth.’
The judge told Buckden it was likely that he did have some form of stress trauma but this was probably the result of a difficult child- hood, rather than a consequence of his 12 years in the Army.
He told Buckden he would serve half of his sentence before being released on licence for a further 12 months.
The judge also passed a restraining order banning him from contacting the prosecution witnesses
‘Breathtaking disrespect’
in the case or making any comment about the matter on social media.
Those conned by him included girlfriend Susanna Domeniconi. He had told her that he was put in care at six because his parents were abusive and neglectful and had even tried to swap him in hospital.
After they broke up in November 2011, Buckden arranged to meet Miss Domeniconi in a hospital coffee bar and told her he had cancer, hoping to win her back.
He later messaged her: ‘Thanks for your prayers. Radiotherapy is tough but I have had worse. I’m not a piece of china, I’m a fighter who will fight until my last breath.’
Former fiancée Louisa Rodriguez told the court she also was caught up in his shameless deceit. ‘We would talk about it a lot,’ she said. ‘He would say things like “I could die”. I would cry or get really upset. I would say “You need to fight this because I don’t want to lose you”.’
She told the court they worked together to secure financial backing for his marathons, writing to potential sponsors. Buckden told her he had been given the all- clear but when they separated in May 2014 he claimed the disease had returned.
She became suspicious and checked hospitals and he admitted lying when she challenged him.
It was soon clear that their whole relationship – and the non-profit business they had set up, Positive Action for post traumatic stress disorder – had been built on lies.
PTSD survivor and writer Lilly Hope Lucario said Buckden trolled, cyber stalked, abused and threatened her. ‘I am so relieved that all of those who have been harmed by him can take some comfort in knowing he has been exposed,’ she told the Mail this week.
She said no amount of trauma could justify his being ‘an abuser, fraud, fake, exploiter’.
Former SAS soldier and best-selling author Andy McNab said: ‘People like Buckden who make these fake claims betray not only our servicemen and women, and veterans, but also the public whose support and encouragement is so crucial to us all doing our jobs.’
Buckden, from Leeds, pleaded guilty halfway through his trial.