Man 'pretended his family died in Grenfell Tower' to get thousands from victim relief fund

A middle-aged man pretended his family died in the Grenfell Tower fire to get almost £10,000 from the victim relief fund, a court has heard.

Anh Nhu Nguyen is said to have claimed he lived in the North Kensington block and that his wife and son had died in the blaze.

He allegedly conned charities and Kensington and Chelsea Council out of almost £10,000 by posing as a victim of the disaster for almost two weeks.

The 52-year-old was given a hotel room, clothing, food, electrical items and cash after he went to Westway Sports Centre, which had been set up as a relief hub, claiming to have lost all his possessions.

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He appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Friday charged with two counts of fraud by false representation.

Nguyen, of Beckenham, south-east London, gave no indication of plea to the charges and has been remanded in custody.

More than 80 people were killed in the blaze which devastated the 24-storey building on June 14, leaving scores of others homeless.

Chaotic scenes

On Thursday, amid chaotic scenes, a local council meeting was cancelled because journalists turned up to report on it.

Council leader Nicholas Paget-Brown began the meeting by apologising for the authority’s response to the tragedy.

But he then called the meeting to an abrupt close, saying that he had received legal advice that the presence of journalists would “prejudice” the inquiry into the tragedy being led by retired judge Sir Martin Moore-Bick.

Asked for Mrs May’s response to the shutdown of the meeting, a Number 10 spokeswoman said: “Our view is that access to democracy should always be easy and we think that is vital if people want to retain confidence in our democratic system.

“In this specific case, the High Court ruled that the meeting should be open, and we would have expected the council to respect that.”

The row increases pressure on Mr Paget-Brown, following reports that cladding used during a multimillion-pound refurbishment of the 24-storey high-rise was switched to a cheaper version.

Both The Times and the BBC said they had seen official documents which stated aluminium panels were preferred to the non-combustible zinc alternative.

Concerns over inquiry

Sir Martin, the judge leading the probe into the fire, warned it might not be broad enough to satisfy all survivors.

He suggested the focus of his investigation would likely be limited to the cause of the fire, why it spread and how it could be prevented in future.

Misgivings soon followed, with several residents, including one woman who lost her 12-year-old cousin in the fire, accusing it of being too “narrow”.

Calls had been made for initial findings into the cause of the fire to be published amid mounting concerns that the inquiry could take years.

He claimed the report would aim to answer “basic factual questions”.

Scepticism about the inquiry had already been flagged by several residents who met Sir Martin on Thursday morning.

His background as a specialist in commercial law was cited as a reason why some saw him as too “technical”.

Backlash

Amanda Fernandez, who lost her 12-year-old cousin in the fire, said she had a “complete lack of confidence” in the inquiry and criticised Mrs May for failing to consult with residents before appointing Sir Martin.

In a statement, Ms Fernandez said: “(Theresa May) has already appointed a judge who has told us the inquiry will be very narrow.

“She promised to consult us on this, but has completely gone back on that promise. We are deeply disappointed.

“We now have a complete lack of confidence in the inquiry’s ability to address the history of negligence that led to the fire, nor the authorities failures in the aftermath of the fire.

“For the truth to emerge and justice to be done we must be involved in shaping this inquiry.”

Tests continue

A spokeswoman for Theresa May confirmed: “So far the cladding from 149 high rise buildings in 45 local authority areas have failed the tests. That continues to be a 100 percent test failure rate.”

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Combustible aluminium composite material (ACM) cladding added to the outside of Grenfell Tower has long been seen as a likely factor in the rapid spread of the June 14 fire.

The government spokeswoman also responded to reports that the public and media were excluded from a council meeting to discuss the fire. She said: “Our view is that access to democracy should always be easy.

“There are rules that state that all meetings must be open to the public except in certain circumstances … and we would have expected the council to respect that.”