By Dorrothy Moyo | In a landmark fraud case, 54-year-old Manny Singh Kooner, also known as Harjinder Kooner, has been sentenced to five years in prison after pleading guilty to multiple counts of fraud. Kooner defrauded 14 victims of nearly £1 million by promising lucrative returns on investments in probate properties, which detectives later revealed was a front for a Ponzi scheme.

Kooner, previously residing at Gunning Court, Horton, operated the fraudulent scheme over the span of more than a year, deceiving numerous investors into parting with large sums of money. He claimed he was using these funds to buy and quickly sell probate properties—homes from deceased estates often sold at lower prices by executors looking to finalize the estate. Investors were assured they would see significant returns upon the resale of these properties.
However, rather than delivering the promised returns, Kooner repeatedly stalled victims, providing excuses as to why they hadn’t been paid. Some victims, growing suspicious, went so far as to visit the properties in which they’d supposedly invested, only to find out from homeowners that their homes had never been listed for sale. Investigators later discovered that Kooner had lost substantial amounts of the money through gambling.
One victim reported giving Kooner a total of £180,000, only to receive £20,000 back. Another individual invested £31,000 with promises of a return as high as £250,000, but never saw any of their money again. In total, 14 victims collectively lost nearly £940,000 to Kooner’s scheme.
Kooner was investigated by Northamptonshire Police’s Economic Crime Unit and subsequently charged with two counts of fraud by false representation and one count of money laundering. After pleading guilty to the charges at Northampton Crown Court on September 5, 2024, Kooner was sentenced on October 31 to a five-year prison term.
Detective Constable Lee Meadows, the lead investigator on the case, expressed satisfaction with the outcome, stating, “Manny Kooner’s lies allowed him to encourage people to part with their cash and invest in his fraudulent schemes. I am pleased that his lies and excuses have caught up with him and that today, he has been sent to prison. This has been a complex investigation, involving speaking to multiple victims from across the country and conducting extensive financial inquiries. I hope this result demonstrates our thoroughness in investigating such cases as well as our determination to ensure people like Manny Kooner are brought to justice.”
This case serves as a stark warning about the risks of unregulated investment schemes and the devastating impact they can have on victims.- ZimEye