Trio of conmen duped investors out of £35m by selling worthless plots of land claiming they would be used for Olympics Case revealed one of Britain's biggest ever 'landbanking' frauds Daniel Webster, 29, Stephen Allan, 30 and Steven Percival, 29, found guilty Sold plots to investors promising huge profits when the land was developed Turned out to be low-value farm land, Green Belt or no planning permission Conmen, from Bromley, Kent, told to expect 'severe' sentences on Friday Three conmen who duped investors into paying thousands of pounds for worthless plots of land by telling them they would be used for the Olympics have been found guilty of fraud. Daniel Webster, 29, Stephen Allan, 30, and Steven Percival, 29, told buyers they were selling valuable plots around Britain - including some which would be developed as part of the London Olympics in 2012 - which would eventually deliver huge profits. But in fact the land invariably turned out to be either low-value farm land, in the Green Belt or unlikely to be granted planning permission. In total, more than 400 investors from across Britain parted with £35million in one of the biggest 'landbanking' frauds to date. Conmen: Daniel Webster, left, and Stephen Allan, right, used fake names and set up front companies to carry out the 'landbanking' fraud for five years Steven Percival named himself gave himself the false name Toby Maguire in reference to the Spiderman star The fraudsters used false names and front companies to carry out the scam between 2005 and 2010, claiming their telesales headquarters in Canary Wharf was selling gym memberships. Allan called himself George Hackett and even set up a front company Allan and Hackett Ltd, named after himself and his alter-ego. Percival named himself after Spiderman star Toby Maguire while Webster gave himself the surname 'Legend'. The trio were today found guilty of fraud following a two month trial at Southwark Crown Court. Ringleader Christopher Demetriou, 30, earlier admitted conspiracy to defraud investors. All three were remanded in custody ahead of their sentencing on Friday. Judge Martin Beddoe said: 'You can expect a severe sentence in relation to these matters.' Earlier in the trial, prosecutor Andrew Bird told the jury: 'Investors were persuaded to buy the plots by various high-pressure sales techniques, typically by cold-calling. They puffed up the value of the plots of land, and making representations that planning permission was being obtained or that a blue-chip purchaser is interesting in purchasing the land. Promises were made that the investor could sell the land back to the marketing company. In fact, the land being sold invariably turn out to be low value farm land or forestry, divided into dozens of tiny plots to be sold on at hugely inflated prices. 'Much of it was in the green belt or in other areas where the grant of planning permission was extremely unlikely', said Mr Bird. No applications for planning permission had in fact been made. False promises: The conmen convinced investors the land was needed as part of plans to build the Olympic Village and Stadium in London among other lies Those who tried to reclaim their investment were told exorbitant extra sums needed to be paid to recoup the money. One plot in Birling Road, Leybourne, West Malling, Kent, which was bought from Kent County Council for £80,000, was divided into 220 mini plots valued at just £363.63 each. The con artists then set about selling each plot for £10,000 a piece, promising rich rewards to investors and drawing up a brochure showing a 'wholly unrealistic' housing project. The scam used front companies including Countrywide Land Holdings Ltd, Countrywide Land, Regional Land, and Plateau Development and Land Ltd, all of which were linked to the same office on the 29th floor of an office block in Canary Wharf. Cancer sufferer David Wright and his wife Sandra-May were among those sucked into the scheme, investing a total of £628,013 in Countrywide Land after being promised hefty profits in return for buying land. The retired couple from Shoreham-on-Sea, West Sussex, were first approached in March 2005 by Allan posing as George Hackett. They were persuaded to part with more than £220,000 for plots in Folkestone, Kent, Aylesbury, Berkswell, in Coventry, Hillesden in Milton Keynes, and Marple in Stockport. Rip-off: The conmen sold mini-plots of land on Birling Road in West Malling, Kent, for £10,000 each when they were valued at just £363.63 The couple had received titles for the land but seen no return by November 2007, but were urged to buy more land in Meopham, in Kent. 'They were expecting Countrywide to take steps to get planning permission and for an opportunity to sell at a profit when the land was snapped up by a developer', said Mr Bird. By March 2009, the Wrights were growing anxious but were met with excuses over the delay and encouraged to invest another £17,500 in the West Malling site. Percival, as Toby Maguire, then told the couple some of their land was being bought up by an American investor, but another £100,000 was needed to seal the deal. The conmen strung them along with claims they were 'privileged clients', asking for increasing sums of money to ensure their investment returned a profit, until eventually they refused to pay any more and were told the money could not be returned. 'Mrs Wright felt that they had to keep paying or that they would lose everything', said Mr Bird. They had been promised financial returns and got nothing. They had been strung along and persuaded to make more and more payments. Landbanking fraud has become increasingly prevalent in recent years. Companies divide land into smaller plots and sell it to investors on the basis that once it is available for development it will soar in value. Fraudsters will use high-pressure sales tactics by cold-calling names and numbers from publicly-available shareholder lists. They can also use email, post, word of mouth or talk at a seminar or exhibition. In fact, the land is often in areas of natural beauty, historical interest or has little chance of being built on and the people behind these companies are actually highly-skilled criminals. The Financial Services Authority estimates landbanking schemes have so far cost UK investors more than £200million. Although not all landbanking schemes are a scam, it is often not made clear to investors that there are restrictions on the development of the land or that it is otherwise protected. They offer this advice on how to protect yourself: Contact the local council where the land is located and asking them whether the land might ever be released for development. Just because the person promoting or operating the scheme says it is guaranteed the land will be developed does not necessarily mean it will be. If you have already invested in a scheme and are concerned, stop sending money to the firm and individuals involved. If you have given them your bank account details, tell your bank immediately. Contact the FSA Consumer Helpline with as much information as you can about your investment and the company involved, including their contact details and "firm reference number" (FRN). Source: The Financial Services Authority (FSA) The scam eventually unravelled after probes by police, trading standards, and the Financial Services Authority, as well as 2010 exposes in the Mail on Sunday. Paperwork showed plots of land in Slough, Sevenoaks, Plymouth, Horsham, Ely, Ascot, and Dover, were used in the scam, all of which were either green belt land or had no planning permission. Raids of the trio's homes revealed a host of fake passports, paperwork under aliases, and details of their victims. Percival's home computer had been used to search on Google for 'Countrywide Land Holding Scam' as the net tightened on the gang. The ringleader of the fraud is believed to have fled the country and is currently on the run. Percival, Allan, and Webster are now facing hefty spells behind bars after being found guilty of conspiracy to defraud. Percival, Webster and Allan, all of Bromley, Kent, had denied the charges but were found guilty following a two-month trial. Demetriou, of Ilford, Essex, earlier admitted conspiracy to defraud.