World · Europe · 3 hrs ago
Former Brookside actor Philip Foster jailed for £13.6m modelling fraud
Former Brookside actor Philip Foster is serving nine years in prison for a £13.6 million modelling fraud and for absconding.
The 51-year-old had been sentenced to eight and a half years in February 2025, but was not in court at the time.
He was arrested in Spain and extradited to the UK, then given an additional six months at Sheffield Crown Court.
Foster ran a network of fake modelling agencies and photography studios in several British cities for more than eight years.
More than 6,000 people were persuaded to pay after being promised paid modelling work; many were left with debt and poor-quality photographs instead.
Victims were often told they had passed a studio test and had to buy a portfolio to join an agency.
The extra sentence brings his total to nine years, and the court confirmed the original sentence.
Former Brookside actor Philip Foster was jailed for nine years over a £13.6 million modelling fraud.
The sentence includes an extra six months for absconding after he fled to Spain.
A six-year National Trading Standards investigation found that more than 6,000 people were deceived by the scheme.
Victims were promised paid modelling work, then pressured to pay for photographic portfolios that had little chance of securing professional jobs.
- Who
- Philip Foster, a 51-year-old former Brookside actor.
- What
- He was jailed for nine years for fraud and money laundering, including an extra six months for absconding.
- When
- 16 October 2026.
- Where
- Sheffield Crown Court, England; Foster appeared by video link from prison.
- Why
- He ran a network of fraudulent modelling agencies that took money from people falsely promised paid modelling work.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Foster was sentenced in his absence to eight and a half years for fraud and money laundering.
Foster was arrested in Spain.
Foster was extradited to the UK, according to the Liverpool Echo as reported by SuaraGarut.ID.
Sheffield Crown Court imposed an additional six months for absconding, bringing Foster's total sentence to nine years.
- Sentence
- Nine years, including six months for absconding
- Fraud proceeds
- Approximately £13.5 million to £13.6 million
- Victims
- More than 6,000
- Investigation
- Six years by National Trading Standards
- Cities named
- Manchester, London, Leeds, Bristol, Coventry and Nottingham
3 sources
What people are saying
You were a coward, you decided to hide and didn't come and face the music.
He has had a great deal going on, of a terrible nature, but he is nevertheless an absconder.
Foster's cruel exploits left thousands of victims in serious debt, causing lasting emotional distress and significant financial pressures.