by Julia Roberts

A former motorcycling champion who conned friends, neighbours and business associates, including a hotel chain millionaire, out of hundreds of thousands of pounds has been jailed for three-and-a-half years.

Julian Clark, 45, who also ran the Linda McCartney Pro Cycling Team, promised potential investors a quick profit if they backed his business ventures.

These included buying and selling high value part exchange motor vehicles or bankruptcy gym equipment, and importing motocross bikes from Belgium and Holland.

But Maidstone Crown Court heard that only the car deal started out as a genuine offer, although that “rapidly” descended into fraud.

Over a three-year period between November 2006 and December 2009, while living in the village of Horsmonden, Clark obtained £737,000 from 20 unsuspecting and trusting victims.

Many were friends whom his family holidayed with, or their children attended the same school as his two youngsters, the court was told. Others were associates from the motocross world.

One was Richard Balfour-Lynn who runs the investment company behind the De Vere, Malmaison and Hotel du Vin chains, and the London department store Liberty.

He gave Clark £50,000 in April 2009 to buy 12 motocross bikes. Mr Balfour-Lynn resorted to taking out a writ against Clark later that year and he was eventually repaid £26,000.

Other victims were also wholly or partly repaid, but only after they “bombarded” him with calls and texts about their missing money.

However, prosecutor Jenny Goldring said Clark used money from one to reimburse another, and only after he had used various delay tactics including bounced cheques and forged copies of purported bank transfers.

Miss Goldring said he even sent a text message with a photo showing piles of money to one investor, with the words: “This is what I have been waiting for.”
Clark told another, she added, who loaned him more than £50,000: “I would never let you down because you are a friend.”

The court heard that Clark also used the money to pay his own mortgage and daily living expenses, but there was no evidence of a luxurious lifestyle.

Clark, who has since sold the family home in Horsmonden and is living in what was described as “meagre” rented accommodation in Leatherhead, Surrey, repaid £420,000 of the total £737,000.

One victim was repaid some of his £35,000 investment only after he pinned several bounced cheques on a noticeboard at a motocross club in Dartford with a note stating: “Beware of Julian Clark. He bounces cheques.”

Confiscation proceedings in relation to the outstanding £317,000 will be held in January.

Clark admitted 22 offences of fraud by false representation. Two similar offences which he denied were ordered to be left on file.

The court was told he also has a previous conviction for a similar £300,000 fraud.

Passing sentence today Judge Richard Polden said it was a “protracted, planned and professional fraud” aggravated by breach of trust.

Clark was said by his defence counsel Jenni Dempster to be “enormously successful” in the world of motorcycling until an accident at the age of 27 left him with a significant brain injury.

He went on to become a founder of a team of vegetarian cyclists who raced professionally under the name of Linda McCartney.

However, the squad was disbanded in 2001 when sponsorsip was pulled - and shortly before Clark was jailed for six months for the previous fraud.