A cruel conman has been jailed after faking being stricken with a terminal brain tumour to swindle an old classmate out of thousands of pounds. Matthew Howarth, 32, reached out of the blue to old pal Thomas Lee 16 years after they left high school to falsely claim he only had weeks to live. 

Wigan Magistrates Court heard jobless Howarth boasted of being a TV producer with private health insurance but make up the lie that he needed cash to pay an excess on the policy. Telecommunications worker Mr Lee, also 32, took out a loan to lend Howarth £2,700 only to be landed with a second plea for £27,000 - he later discovered two other friends had lent Howarth money, one neighbour giving him £7,300.

Now Howarth's been jailed for a year after admitting fraud and ordered to pay Mr Lee £1,200 in compensation. Three iPhone's and a brand new MacBook have been seized by police so they can be sold to help pay back victims. 

Speaking from the dock, Howarth said: "I am sincerely sorry and I am heartbroken to lose my friend. I had been experiencing headaches and I am back under neurology for an urgent referral." 

Howarth, of Atherton, Greater Manchester - who was found to have no terminal illness - was also banned from contacting Mr Lee for two years under a restraining order. 

JPs told him: "You deliberately targeted a vulnerable victim over a period of time, resulting in a serious detrimental effect on him and a financial gain for yourself." 

Prosecutor Ms Shazia Aslam explained how Mr Lee was an old school friend of Howarth, who contacted him even though they had not been in touch since they had left high school many years ago. 

In a Facebook post, Howarth once wrote: "An utterly abysmal few weeks in and out of hospital like a proverbial pinball. Never a dull moment when suffering from illness." 

Further Facebook posts he wrote highlighted The Princess of Wales' cancer treatment and adding ironically: "Someone I used to know lied about a cancer diagnosis to get benefits and a new property. What sort of despicable human being does that? Lowest of the low dregs of society. Shame on you!" 

Ms Askam added: "The defendant told the complainant he had worked in TV and that he has private medical care that covers him up to £10 million for treatment. 

"He then maintained that he said that a £10,000 excess had to be paid on that and said he had already received about £7,300 of that total. 

"The complainant at the time was feeling very vulnerable and in his words says the defendant almost groomed him. 

"The defendant said he wanted to get treated at a private hospital and said if he did not receive this pending treatment he would die within months. 

"The complainant, having heard all this, suffered from sleepless nights as he thought about his old friend apparently dying when he could be in a position to help. 

"He told the defendant that he would take out a loan and he would give the loan money to the defendant and the defendant could eventually pay him back. 

"As a result the complainant transferred £2,700 on October 17, 2023 by a bank transfer. After the money had been transferred the complainant said that he did not suspect anything untoward until the defendant asked for a further amount of money to be paid."

The court heard Mr Lee did his own research and discovered a Facebook page involving up to two people, who gave Howarth money in the past. 

Ms Askam added: "One person believed to have contributed £7,300 is a neighbour of the defendant. 

"Mr Lee asked for medical evidence from the defendant to prove the illness but was kept being given excuses and he reported the matter to police. The defendant was arrested and gave full admissions of guilt in the interview. 

"He said he apologised for doing it and said he not in the right headspace. He said he was in a bad mental space and for that reason he lied to the complainant about having a brain tumour and claiming it was causing him to become seriously ill." 

In a victim impact statement, Mr Lee said: "At the time I was in quite a depressed state having separated with my partner of nine years and when Matt reached out it made me feel good to get back in contact with someone else. 

"Everything seemed to be going well until he told me he was weeks away from death. It affected my sleep and mental wellbeing and it also affected my work.

"Initially when I found out none of it was true I was actually relieved my friend was not dying and that I would no longer have to help sort out funeral arrangements after all. 

"However when all that died down, I then got to think about what had been done which made me angry and upset. It made me feel quite stupid. He was someone I thought was a friend. 

"It really affected my trust in people. I used to do anything for people. Now I second guess things and I cannot trust someone who is not my family." 

Solicitor Duncan Phillips, defending, said: "My client acknowledges the seriousness of what he has done to Mr Lee. But he has suffered multiple traumatic events over a period of time and clearly he is a very vulnerable individual himself. 

"This is someone who is remorseful and can only apologise and make things right as he intends to do."