The children of Sandra Clifton, who cut off all contact with her children after starting a relationship with con man Robert Hendy-Freegard, have made an emotional plea to find their mum.
Sophie and Jake Clifton were interviewed by Susanna Reid and Ben Shepherd on Good Morning Britain on Thursday after appearing in the Netflix documentary series about Freegard and his victims, The Puppet Master.
They revealed they haven’t had contact with their mum in “seven or eight years” and Jake said he believes his mum has been “manipulated”.
Watch the emotional video below:
The siblings are desperate for answers following the release of the documentary last month, in which they spoke about how Hendy-Freegard entered their lives and his relationship with their mum.
Sandra and convicted con man Freegard, who had adopted the name “David” at the time, met in 2012 on an online dating site after she divorced Mark, the father of her children.
The relationship escalated quickly, with “David” taking them on holiday to Spain but refusing to let them know his surname.
During the Good Morning Britain interview, Jake said he was 14 years old with Freegard came into their lives and it took him “years afterwards” to realise who his real identity.
He added that he wants his mum to know that they love her as tearfully recounted their close bond before she met Freegard.
In 2015 the police finally tracked down Freegard and Sandra after they vanished the previous year.
In the years that followed, the Clifton family had minimal contact with her mum and she didn’t attend the funerals for either of her parents when they died.
Jake and Sophie were taken to court by Sandra in 2020 over the sale her parents’ house. The hearing took place over Zoom due to the coronavirus pandemic and Sandra retained ownership of the house.
Sandra sold the house and both Jake and Sophie said in the Netflix documentary that they believe the money from the house was given to Freegard.
At the end of the documentary, producers included a statement they received via email from someone claiming to be Sandra.
The email claimed that much of the Clifton’s story was untrue, that Sandra was not missing, and that Jake and Sophie were able to contact her and they should accept she’s in love with Freegard.
The Puppet Master tells the story of one of the world's most audacious con men who controlled, conned and fleeced at least seven women and one man, stealing close to a million pounds. All three episodes are available on Netflix now.
Good Morning Britain airs weekday mornings at 6am on ITV.
Featured Image Credit: ITVTopics: TV And Film, Netflix, Good Morning Britain
Gregory Robinson