Megan Clarke was weeks away from one of the biggest days of her life: a wedding to the man of her dreams.
After meeting her charming and wealthy aristocratic fiancé, Lord Bertie Underwood, at a bar in 2017, the couple fell in love and just a few months into their relationship decided to get married.
But after a number of warning signs, two months before the ceremony, Megan realized her future husband wasn’t who he said he was.
The 27-year-old discovered that Bertie Underwood did not exist and was just a series of aliases her partner had used to deceive women like her.
She realized that Bertie’s real name was Robert Madejski, a serial fraudster with previous convictions as a scammer.
To make matters worse, Megan also discovered that Robert had racked up £30,000 of debt in her name after setting up numerous credit cards using her details – an amount she is still paying off.
Megan Clarke met her charming and wealthy aristocratic fiancé, Lord Bertie Underwood, at a bar in 2017
Megan and Berties were in love and had been dating for almost a year when they decided to get married. Betie told her that once she was married, she would be given the title of Lady.
But months later, Megan discovered his true identity as Robert Madejski (pictured) and was shown a photo of his mugshot and news of his long history of fraud.
Megan met Robert when he came across a bar she was working at on the Isle of Wight in the summer of 2017.
Robert introduced himself as Lord Bertie Underwood, a wealthy aristocrat whose great-great-grandfather had invented the Underwood typewriter.
They hit it off straight away, Robert even sent flowers to work before asking her out.
Robert took her to a fancy restaurant where they enjoyed a three-course meal and began to talk openly about their lives.
From then on, their relationship developed rapidly, as Robert showered her with lavish gifts from Harrods, took her to London for lavish dates and regularly drove her around in his Bentley.
After seeing each other for just a month, Megan moved into Robert’s three-storey home on the Isle of Wight coast.
Then, on Christmas Day, Robert proposed with a Cartier diamond ring.
Megan was involved in a whirlwind romance and agreed to marry him, even being told that once married she would be given the title of Lady.
But things soon began to unravel just as quickly as letters with other people’s names soon arrived on their doorsteps.
Serial fraudster Robert racked up £30,000 of debt in Megan’s name after setting up numerous credit cards with her details – an amount she is still paying off
Just a month into their relationship, Megan (pictured) moved into Robert’s three-storey home on the Isle of Wight coast. He asked her to marry him on Christmas Day
Robert initially told Megan that they were addressed to the previous tenants, but she didn’t buy it.
She told the Sun: ‘I asked Bertie and his attitude changed immediately. He shut it down pretty quickly and became very defensive and angry.
“It’s definitely the moment when I started questioning everything.”
Megan investigated and after searching his office, she found several cards with the same names as those on the letters.
Megan Googled all the names, but made the poignant discovery that her husband-to-be was not who he said he was.
Megan revealed his true identity as Robert Madejski and received a photo of his mugshot and news of his long history of fraud.
It turned out that none of what Robert had told her was true; he was not the heir to a wealthy estate, nor his job as a watchmaker.
Even the diamond engagement ring he gave her was fake.
She also realized that Robert had taken out credit cards in her name, leaving her £30,000 in debt – a huge bill that she is still paying off.
Megan reported Robert to the police, after which he fled.
Megan soon realized that Bertie’s real name was Robert Madejski (pictured), a serial fraudster with previous convictions as a scammer
She also posted on Facebook telling people about Robert’s criminal background and how he was able to spread countless lies – in an attempt to raise awareness about the serial fraudster in the hope of getting him caught.
But this again led to some more shocking truths.
People came forward about their encounters with Robert and revealed that they saw him during his relationship with Megan – not only was he a serial con man, he was also a serial cheat.
Megan told Metro: ‘Every person he has done this with and had sexual relationships with has been different.
“There is absolutely no pattern in type, gender or age, which makes me think there were never any real feelings involved.”
Robert was eventually caught by police and given a five-year prison sentence on unrelated fraud charges.
However, he escaped from prison in May 2022 and is still on the run.
Megan recently revealed he has been avoiding police by moving between multiple addresses in London and Henley on Thames.
She added that he posed as the Viscount of Norfolk using the name Leopold Fitz-Allen Howard as he continued to defraud people of thousands of pounds.
Sussex Police said in a statement: ‘We can confirm that Robert Madejski is still wanted by police. He has links to Hampshire, Kent and Essex, having previously gone into hiding at HMP Ford.
“He is also known to have alias surnames; Doughty, Underwood and Monsoon.
‘Investigations are ongoing. Anyone who sees it should call 999 and quote serial number 1378 of 11/05/2022.”
Robert (pictured) was eventually caught by police and given a five-year prison sentence on unrelated fraud charges
Meanwhile, Megan has continued to pay off her debts after the Police Action Fraud team were unable to help her with money from her photography business.
Reflecting on her relationship with Robert, Megan said that while she remains “a very happy and positive person,” she is much more wary of what people are “capable of.”
She admitted she is still struggling to make sense of the “bizarre” ordeal and heartbreakingly wonders if she will ever be able to get married again.
She told Metro: ‘Maybe if I ever fall in love again I will feel differently. We’ll see what the future brings.’