Where is Elliot Castro now?
The new BBC docuseries Confessions of a Teenage Fraudster tells the story of Elliot Castro, a former conman who used the credit card details of his victims to fund a lavish lifestyle.
In this article, we take a look at the former fraudster’s criminal shenanigans and ask the question: Where is Elliot Castro now?
Who is Elliot Castro?
Castro, who hails from the city of Battlefield, Glasgow, got his first job at the age of 16 at a mobile phone company. He allegedly claimed he was 18 on the application form, but this was far from being the worst lie he ever told.
After securing the job, Castro realized he could use his customers’ personal details to trick banks into sending him credit cards that he could use for his own financial gain. He was eventually sacked from his job but this wasn’t a major problem for the young crook as he had found a way to live the life he wanted, without needing a weekly wage.
Initially, he used the credit cards he acquired to buy CDs and clothes. But as his crimes escalated, he began to spend money on a lavish lifestyle which incorporated stays in 5-star hotels, trips around the world, and fancy cars.
What happened to Elliot Castro?
By the age of 20, Castro had spent over a million pounds of innocent people’s money. But as the saying goes, all good things have to come to an end.
After several run-ins with the law and serving prison time for fraud in Britain, Ireland, and Canada, he was caught again in November 2004 after buying £2000 in gift vouchers using a stolen credit card at a Harvey Nichols store in Edinburgh.
The following year, Castro appeared at Isleworth Crown Court in Middlesex, where he admitted to fraud offences. He was then sentenced to two years in an open prison at the age of 21.
Where is Elliot Castro now?
Castro has put his days of crime behind him. However, this doesn’t mean he’s completely out of the fraud business! After leaving prison, he became a music producer and then began a consultancy firm which he still runs today, advising banks and companies on fraud prevention strategies.
In an interview printed in the Daily Record, he spoke about his now-honest way of living. He said:
“I help close loopholes, after all, the best person to ask is someone who got through them. It has taken a while to build up my reputation and I am grateful to now be trusted within the industry…I am so much happier now that I am earning an honest living and I look after my money a lot better than I did when I was splashing other people’s. Don’t get me wrong, I still like lovely things but now I have to save up for them and they take longer to get.”
To learn more about Elliot Castro and his life of crime, you can catch Confessions of a Teenage Fraudster on BBC iPlayer in the UK. At the time of writing, the documentary is also available to watch on BBC3 and BBC Scotland.
If you’re worried that the company you work for might be scammed by a credit card fraudster, you can also book Elliot Castro as a keynote speaker using the contact information here. It will cost you £3000 to hire him. But perhaps that’s a small price to pay for information that might protect you from losing millions!
Read More: Confessions of a Teenage Fraudster Docuseries Review
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