Brit Netflix ‘con mum’ Dionne Marie Hanna ‘who scammed her own SON’ arrested after victims recognised her from hit show
BRITISH Netflix “con mum” Dionne Marie Hanna who allegedly scammed her own son has been arrested after victims miraculously recognised her from the hit show.
The 84-year-old faces a whopping five counts of fraud involving three people who appeared to allegedly fund her extravagant, ultra-luxurious lifestyle.
The Singapore resident is accused of conning people out of their cash after claiming she would pay them back through her inheritance from Brunei’s royal family.
The charges against Hanna arose after her alleged victims came across hit documentary Con Mum on Netflix.
The show tells the story of how the elderly woman ruined her biological son’s life, Graham Hornigold, after she contacted him in 2020 claiming to be his long-lost mum.
Despite DNA tests proving she is Graham’s mum, he says that after they reconnected, the 84-year-old scammed him out of hundreds of thousands of pounds.
Hanna told Graham that she was a successful international entrepreneur before conning the London-based top pastry chef out of an eye-watering £300,000, the documentary claims.
The alleged fraudster pensioner appeared in court via video link, reportedly from a hospital bed in Singapore’s Tan Tock Seng, local media claims.
It is unclear as to why she is in a medical facility.
Hanna is accused of also duping three men in Singapore and France into transferring gargantuan sums to her accounts.
She claimed that the cash was needed for legal fees and opening new bank accounts.
The fraudster allegedly looked to convince her alleged victims by claiming she was terminally ill and promising to pay the back through her connections with Brunei royalty.
But such claims were questioned by long-lost son Graham, who said he faced a similar scam.
In exchange for the alleged victims’ cash, the 84-year-old promised make charitable donations, such as giving millions of dollars to a mosque and a Muslim non-profit organisation in Singapore, the court heard.
After the bombshell Netflix documentary aired last month, cops in Singapore revealed they received various complaints from alleged victims.
It currently remains unclear just how much they lost.
But authorities said a preliminary investigation showed that Hanna was in fact alleged to be involved in at least a whopping five cases of fraud.
These losses amount to more than an eye-watering £115,000.
Cops said: “As part of the arrangement to receive monies for the investment and inheritance, the victims were asked to transfer money for legal fees and opening of overseas bank accounts.
“The victims believed her investment and release of inheritance to be genuine and made several transfers to her.”
If convicted, Hanna faces up to 20 years in jail and would also be hit with a fine.
The hit Netflix show told the story of Graham, 50, who was born on a British Army base in Germany and raised by his violently abusive dad in St Albans who told him his mum had left.
He revealed that when they first reunited as son and mum, Hanna flaunted her apparent wealth by revealing she is the illigitimate daughter of the sultan of Brunei.
She even initially showered Graham and his then-partner Heather Kaniuk in ultra-luxurious gifts ranging from cars to homes.
But Hanna said that her health was declining and told her soon she wanted him to have her money – but there was a catch.
She said the two of them had to travel to Switzerland to set up a bank account in Graham’s name.
Graham’s partner at the time, Heather, said in the documentary: “I started becoming very afraid of who this woman was.
“I realised I was on a train heading for a wreck and I needed to save Graham.”
Graham was conned out of an eye-watering £300,000 by his own mum.
Hanna is next due to appear in court on Friday, April 11.