A fraudster who claimed he lost his wife and son in the Grenfell Tower fire has been jailed for fraud offences.
Anh Nhu Nguyen claimed £11,270 from charities and Kensington and Chelsea Council that had been set aside for victims of the disaster, and even shook hands with Prince Charles when the heir to the throne visited survivors.
The 53-year-old was handed a 21-month sentence at Southwark Crown Court on Friday (February 9).
Nguyen came forward to authorities in the immediate aftermath of the fire and was assigned family liaison officers after he claimed that he lost his wife and son in the fire.
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He provided officers with a very detailed account of how he lost sight of his wife and son as they tried to leave Grenfell Tower on the morning of June 14 , and said he had been treated at St Mary's Hospital for smoke inhalation.
However, a check of records at the Paddington hospital showed he had never been there.
He claimed financial support after saying he had lost all his property during the fire, and was provided emergency hotel accommodation.
Police noticed clear inconsistencies in his story and spoke to nearby residents of the flat within Grenfell Tower that Nguyen claimed to live in, who confirmed that the man did not live at the address.
Relatives of the person who lived in the flat Nguyen said he lived in were made aware of the investigation, and were spoken to by their family liaison officers.
They also confirmed that Nguyen did not reside at the address.
Officers traced the actual address in Beckenham Road, Bromley, where Nguyen was living at the time of the fire, and it was also established that he did not have a wife or child.
On June 28 2017 he was arrested on suspicion of fraud and charged the following day.
He accepted two counts of fraud by false representation, gaining money, hotel accommodation and clothing, and and one count of making an untrue statement to obtain a passport on November 2.
Investigating officer DC James Tauber said: "Nguyen's fraud was designed to make sure he profited from the support intended for the true victims of the tragic Grenfell Tower fire.
"He went to great lengths to fabricate an elaborate story about his escape from the tower."
Detective Superintendent Matt Bonner added: "The distress and suffering caused to so many that night in June is harrowing. People lost their homes, all their possessions and tragically their families and loved ones.
"Not only did Nguyen take money, housing and clothing intended for genuine victims, he diverted police time and resources away from those who most needed it.
"We will investigate anyone who we think is fraudulently profiting from the tragic fire at Grenfell Tower."
Nguyen was born in Vietnam and moved to this country in the 1980s.
He has racked up 28 previous convictions for 56 offences spanning more than 30 years, including theft, dishonest offences, arson and grievous bodily harm, the court had previously heard.
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