Arrested in Belgium “Netflix scammer” Robert Hendy-Freegard, after injuring two gendarmes

The Belgian police arrested this Friday near Brussels the English scammer Robert Hendy-Freegardwho starred in a Netflix documentary series and was wanted after injuring two gendarmes, one of them seriously, during a check on his residence in central France at the end of August.

Hendy-Freegard is the protagonist of the series ‘Who is pulling the strings: On the trail of the biggest impostors’ (Netflix, 2022), in which the filmmakers Sam Benstead and Gareth Johnson describe him as “a cruel con man who pretends to be a British spy” capable of “manipulating and robbing his victims, leaving families in ruins”.

The French authorities were looking for the Englishman Hendy-Freegard since the end of August.51 years old and who served a sentence in his country between 2005 and 2009 for having defrauded more than a million pounds sterling, posing as an MI5 secret agent.

As reported this Saturday by the Flemish public broadcaster (VRT), after eight days of searching, the East Flanders (northern Belgium) police found and arrested the man on the E40 road in Grand-Bigard, a town near Brussels.

“The traffic police recognized him from his vehicle, which was denounced for the events that occurred in France. He was immediately arrested,” said Gilles Blondeau, of the Hal-Vilvorde Prosecutor’s Office.

Robert Hendy-Freegard will appear this Saturday before an investigating judge in Brusselsbefore the council chamber decides on his transfer to France.

Living with his partner for seven years in the remote French town of Forêt Belleville, ran over two gendarmes with his Audi A3 in August when they were participating in a health check at his residenceinhabited by 26 Beagle dogs.