Crown may seize £47m of conman's fortune

John "Goldfinger" Palmer, one of Britain's wealthiest criminals who was jailed last year for a huge timeshare scam, faces losing £47m from his considerable fortune.

In the biggest confiscation case of its kind in Britain, lawyers for the Crown sought to get the money he received by defrauding 17,000 clients of his network of Tenerife companies.

Palmer, 51, who was ranked at equal 129th in this year's Sunday Times rich list with a fortune of £270m, was jailed for eight years for his part in the timeshare fraud.

His first trial was stopped in 1999 after eight months because he argued that publicity over his links to Kenneth Noye, the M25 road-rage killer, had tainted his case. However, Palmer was convicted during the second case and, earlier this month, failed to have his trial ruled invalid.

Yesterday, his legal team at the Old Bailey was unsuccessful in trying to get the case thrown out on a technicality and the prosecution pressed for a £47m confiscation order. Palmer, a former coin dealer, is also expected to face compensation claims for several million pounds from victims of the fraud. His assets include a mansion in the West Country, a yacht and a chateau.

Palmer was cleared of handling proceeds from the £26m Brink's-Mat gold bullion robbery at Heathrow in 1983. Although he was acquitted of the charge, the case gave him his nickname.

The hearing continues today.