The latest victim who lost money to a serial love rat, whose victims include Mandurah women, has asked why authorities have not laid charges since he was first outed 15 months ago.
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Two weeks ago, the Mandurah Mail revealed Brett Turton, who was jailed for fraud in Melbourne after scamming at least 10 Victorian women between 2002 and 2005, was back to his old tricks.
Bayswater resident Carol Marshall, 64, told the Mail Turton took $3340 in cash from her between January and June using the alias, 'Simon Brenton', a high-earning De Beers diamond exploration geologist.
Turton used a fake Canadian accent for the entire five months he lived with her.
Dubbed the "Catch Me If You Can" scammer by the Melbourne press because of the similarities between his crimes and those of Leonardo DiCaprio's character Frank Abagnale in the 2002 Hollywood film of the same name, Turton was convicted in 2005 of 35 charges of obtaining property or financial advantage by deception.
The Mail first spoke with a local victim in May 2018. We have now spoken to 11 Perth and Mandurah women who say they have been tricked out of money by Turton in the past five years.
Since July 2018, WA Police have been trying to locate Turton, formerly a forklift operator, after two women claimed he stole jewellery from one to give to the other. At that stage, he was using the alias 'Brad Collins' and spoke with an American accent.
Read more on the series:
- Captain Crook: Serial love rat strikes again with new identity
- Hunt for Captain Crook: Policeman urges community to report scams
- Captain Crook continues dodgy endeavours
- 'Watch' out for Captain Crook: Missing items returned to rightful owners
- Hunt for Captain Crook: Policeman urges community to report scams
The most recent victim Gaye Axford, 55, said she had a three-week whirlwind affair with Turton, whom she met at the Local Hotel in Fremantle on August 17.
Gaye said Turton told her he worked for the Anglo American mining company, which he said recently bought De Beers Group.
The East Fremantle resident said Turton was smiling at her from afar and started up a conversation.
"He was pleasant and seemed decent, honest and genuine," she said.
Gaye said not too long into the conversation, Turton asked her to be his date to his father's wedding in Vancouver and said he would pay for the flights.
"He said, 'you think I'm joking, don't you?'" she said.
He is fairly easy to spot in a crowd so I can't believe he is moving around Perth and still hasn't been caught yet.
- Gaye Axford
"It was flattering and the more we talked, the more feasible it sounded."
Gaye said Turton asked her to close her eyes, before he put earrings in her palm, and asked her to put them in her earlobes.
"He said 'when you go to the ladies, look in the mirror, they're for you - they're yours'," she said.
"They were sparkly studs and looked to me like they were real diamonds.
"He said he'd worked for Anglo American for 21 years so it made sense he would get them cheaply."
Turton stayed at Gaye's house.
"He was supposed to be going back to Canada the next day, but he changed his flight," she said.
It was so believable. I wouldn't have left my keys for him if it wasn't.
- Jim Bush
"I had Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday off, so he hung around my house the next few days."
Gaye said Turton took cash from her purse, but she could not be sure how much.
"I also gave him $90 because he said his father collects bank notes and I thought nothing of it because he'd booked a flight and travel insurance for me," she said.
Gaye said the pair was set to fly business class on an Anglo American corporate jet to Turton's father's wedding in Canada on September 5, after multiple flight delays, before Turton disappeared.
"He woke me up at 6.30am and said the car is coming to pick us up in four hours," she said.
"He was going to FoodWorks to change some money and said he'd be back in no time."
Hours later, Gaye realised Turton was not coming back. Gaye said she received a one-word email from Turton, which said, 'sorry'.
"I was devastated," she said.
"I think he realised I didn't have much money."
Gaye said Turton told her he owned two South Fremantle properties and he would help Gaye's son get a new job.
"He gave me hope for an amazing holiday and the chance of a better life," she said.
"He may not have taken much money from me but it was really cruel."
Gaye said she rang Crime Stoppers and spoke with someone who "wasn't particular interested" and was disappointed with the response from Fremantle Police Station.
"They didn't even write up a report," she said.
"Police need to catch him and invest in this - It obviously isn't a priority.
"He is fairly easy to spot in a crowd so I can't believe he is moving around Perth and still hasn't been caught yet."
"His accent was on all night - I can't believe this"
The night Gaye met Turton, Jim Bush and his friends also met him at the Sail and Anchor in Fremantle.
Jim said they sat on a couch near Turton to watch the football.
"There was a couch beside the chair he was on - he was by himself," he said.
"He said he was a geologist and was telling us all these stories, diamonds this, diamonds that.
"We kind of wanted to get rid of him at the start, hoping he would leave.
"He said he was flying back to Canada that night at 11.30pm."
He said Turton showed them a pouch filled with diamonds in his backpack and said he was getting one made into a ring for his future daughter-in-law.
"There was so much depth, he knew facts about everything," he said.
"We said we were going to watch the rugby at The Local and invited him there - we felt kind of bad.
"I said to him, 'you can't take your backpack to the Local, it has all that fancy stuff in it'.
"I said, 'Dude, leave your bag at mine. I will leave your keys in the letterbox so you can come and get it later'."
Turton met Gaye at the Local Hotel.
Jim said he heard Turton enter his South Fremantle home at 12pm.
"I heard the door fling open, he stormed in, stormed out and gone," he said.
"I thought, 'oh geez he has missed his flight'."
But, Gaye said she was waiting in the car, before the pair went to her house.
Gaye said Turton told her he owned the South Fremantle house and Jim and his friends were his tenants.
Jim said Turton's story was very detailed.
"His accent was on all night," he said. "I can't believe this. There was so much depth to it.
"It was so believable. I wouldn't have left my keys for him if it wasn't."
WA Police have said the investigation is ongoing and have asked for anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.