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Prosecutors have labeled it as among the biggest frauds of its nature in the UK.

A total of 14 individuals have been sentenced for their involvement in a £28 million scheme to defraud more than 3,500 holiday ownership investors.

The victims were keen to get out of age-old timeshare contracts and went looking for support.

The majority were aged between 60 and 80. More than 500 of them parted with more than £10,000, and a single victim transferred in excess of £80,000.

Those targeted were faced aggressive sales meetings lasting up to six hours. They were out of money, possessing valueless fake "credits" and remained trapped in high-priced holiday ownership agreements they often use.

The Business Behind the Fraud

The firm at the centre of the fraud was Sell My Timeshare (SMT). They took clients' cash to support the directors' lavish way of life of prestigious schooling, millionaire mansions and private jets.

The man at the top of the organization, the company director, was given a seven and a half year jail time in January for deceptive scheme.

Recently, his partner Nicola was among the last group to receive sentencing.

She received a two-year suspended jail sentence at the judicial venue after admitting illegal fund handling.

This has been a lengthy process and signifies a major victory for the individuals who testified, the authorities and the Crown.

How the Probe Started

I first heard about the firm came in the mid-2016. I was working in the investigations unit of a news organization, making current affairs features.

A colleague pointed out that his mum had inherited the ownership of a vacation unit in Spain and, after years of holidays, had begun looking to exit the deal.

It should be noted how widespread timeshares had grown with English tourists in the 1980s and 1990s.

Timeshares permitted individuals to occupy the identical property annually, or swap their vacation periods with fellow investors who had properties in other resorts. Approximately 600,000 sun-lovers accepted that chance.

The first timeshare rush was paired with a lot of stories about rip-off merchants mis-selling investments. They appeared frequently on investigative shows.

The standard holiday ownership agreement bound owners for long periods.

At that time, those investors who had enjoyed their guaranteed place in the sun for decades were ageing, and many were attempting to wave goodbye to their vacation investments.

A number had health issues and found it difficult to access their properties. A few just felt they'd got all they wanted from them. And some had deceased, in frequent situations leaving their loved ones to inherit the deals - plus their yearly fees and upkeep costs.

The Undercover Operation Develops

It was at this point the relative had found herself. She browsed the internet for options and discovered the organization, a business whose digital platform claimed to terminate her deal.

But, having submitted funds and booked a meeting with them, her relatives had doubts.

Subsequent checking showed hundreds of people claiming they had handed over cash and got nothing from the service. Indeed, they had been left out of pocket. Significant sums.

Our team commenced probing what was happening. It soon emerged that there were dubious individuals operating in the holiday ownership market.

One lawyer had many grievance cases waiting to sue the organization.

Reporters contacted people who had dealt with the organization and they each reported similar experiences. They thought the business would buy their property from them but when they attended a meeting (for which they made an advance payment) they were informed there was no market for their property.

Instead, they were encouraged - actually pressured - to spend more money purchasing "Monster Rewards", associated with the outfit's parent company, the overarching entity.

The nature of these rewards was rather ambiguous. They appeared to be a kind of currency, providing reduced-price holidays and services and shopping deals.

And they were seemingly "tradable" with fellow investors, at a future date.

Paying cash immediately would lead to an eventual payoff that would pay for SMT's fees and result in the timeshare holder with a gain, released finally from their troublesome contract.

Too good to be true? Certainly, that proved correct.

A 'Deceptive Tactic'

If these accounts were true, this was a large-scale fraud.

The technique is termed a "deceptive marketing."

An operator - here SMT - "attracts the client by advertising a particular product but then to say that's not available, pushing the client to another, inferior product or service.

Such practices are unlawful. Equipped with all the testimony we had collected, we argued to discreetly video one of the organization's sessions.

The process requires commitment, energy, and compelling reasons for why this is the only way to collect the data needed to confirm deceptive practices.

Once authorized, our small team organized a meeting with one of the firm's agents in Stratford-Upon-Avon.

Pretending to be a member of the public wanting to get his mum free from her timeshare contract|holiday ownership agreement