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Conman who swindled West Ham stars out of £61,000 jailed for four years

A fraudster who conned Premier League football stars including former England manager Sam Allardyce out of thousands of pounds has been jailed for four years.

Stephen Ackerman targeted West Ham staff -- including then-boss Allardyce and England striker Andy Carroll -- when he visited the east London club's training ground to sell them luxury hampers.

The 48-year-old, of Hillcroft, Loughton, Essex, was found guilty at Snaresbrook Crown Court in October of 18 counts of fraud, totalling more than £61,000.

Ackerman used the pseudonym Mark Kingston while selling the goods during a visit to the training ground in December 2014.