A CALLOUS fraudster posed as the Queen’s footman to flog a walking stick he claimed belonged to the late monarch on eBay.
Dru Marshall started a bidding war on the online auction site for the “antler walking stick” just days after Her Majesty passed away.
Dru Marshall posed as a senior footmanSolent
PAThe listing reached £540 before Marshall “hastily” removed it[/caption]
The price reached £540 before the 26-year-old cancelled the listing after learning cops had launched an investigation.
Marshall has now swerved jail and was instead handed a 12-month community order with 40 hours of unpaid work.
He was also ordered to pay a surcharge of £114 as well as £500 in costs at Southampton Magistrates’ Court.
JPs heard how Marshall claimed he was a senior footman at Windsor Castle when he made the listing in September 2022.
He said the Queen used the stick in her final years “as she struggled with her mobility” and falsely claimed the money raised would go to Cancer Research UK.
After his lies were rumbled, Marshall said the sale “was not a scam but a joke made in bad taste and later a social experiment to see how much attention his post would receive”.
He also claimed his account had been hacked by a pal in Spain but prosecutors discovered he had been searching for “the Queen” and “how to delete an eBay listing”.
Marshall was found guilty of fraud by false representation following a trial.
Julie Macey, Senior Crown Prosecutor for CPS Wessex, said: “Dru Marshall used the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II to try and hoodwink the public with a fake charity auction – fuelled by greed and a desire for attention.
“Marshall’s scheme was ultimately foiled before he could successfully con any unsuspecting victims – and the CPS will continue to work hand-in-glove with law enforcement to bring fraudsters to justice.”
GettyThe cruel scam came just one week after the Queen’s death[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
