Smear campaign: ‘guilty as hell’

AN angry homeowner who launched a smear campaign against an estate agents was found guilty of fraud yesterday after he admitted to a jury he was “guilty as hell”.

Martin Frostick (53), was so aggrieved at losing out in a property deal 11 years ago he sent bogus faxes claiming estate agents Ryder and Dutton were going bankrupt to 765 of their clients and associates.

Frostick of Newbarn, Delph, told the jury he had rented out his own home in Haworth Street in the village before asking his building society Bradford and Bingley to repossess the property when his tenants stopped paying the rent.

At the same time, he was in the process of buying a farmhouse in Saddleworth for £280,000.
Frostick told the jury he believed that he had lost out on the farmhouse because Ryder and Dutton were acting as agents for Bradford and Bingley in selling his property in Haworth Street, which he believed was “grossly undervalued”. Frostick said, “I think they thought that I was a dodgy person because Haworth Street was being repossessed. It was a conflict of interest.” Frostick believed his property had been undervalued, and approached Ryder and Dutton as to why this was the case.

He became angry when they told him they couldn’t help him with any details as they didn’t have the documents from 11 years ago.

He responded in an email to one of the directors Richard Powell, saying: “If you’re absolutely sure, neighbour, I’ll begin at 10am. Good luck everybody, Blackadder goes forth.”

He then began sending the bogus winding up order.

Frostick will be sentenced later today.