Disgraced dodgy accountant who reinvented himself as ‘ghostbuster' is back in the dock
Tom Colton was jailed in the past for stealing €322K from an elderly couple
'Psychic Swindler' Tom Colton — who has avoided jail following his latest conviction — claims to be a ghostbuster who has helped people with haunted homes.
The self-described 'spiritual medium' who was previously jailed for stealing €322,000 from an elderly couple, was back in court in recent weeks where he became the first person to be prosecuted for acting as a director following an automatic disqualification.
However, Colton (49) from St Wolstan's Abbey, Celbridge, Co. Kildare, walked free from court after the judge handed him a suspended sentence.
The former accountant and businessman, who reinvented himself as a medium after getting into financial bother, set up a spiritual wedding and funeral business following his release from prison after swindling the elderly couple out of money.
Colton, who was also a Leinster rugby referee and administrator, set up the company despite being disqualified from running any company due to his previous theft conviction.
Tom Colton
The Sunday World called to his home to request an interview with him but he closed the door in our reporter's face without saying anything.
We had hoped to ask him about his crimes, as well as his claims about talking to ghosts.
We can reveal that as well as being able to communicate with dead people, Colton claims that he has performed 'spirit rescues' on haunted homes.
In his book Will We Ever Meet Again?: A Bridge Between this World and the Next, Colton discusses his journey into mediumship.
'We get a unique insight into the challenges of this very unconventional calling, as Tom performs 'spirit rescues' in homes troubled by persistent spirit activity and helps families reconcile with the loss of loved ones,' the book's blurb claims.
Colton was dubbed the 'psychic swindler' after he was convicted of theft in 2015 — but he says he sees himself more as a medium that a psychic.
'A medium is able to make contact with someone in the spirit world directly, without the use of tools, whereas most psychics will work with tools such as cards, rune stones, crystal balls, tea leaves or by reading the sitter's palm,' he says in his book.
One purchaser of the book left a two-star review online, saying: 'I really wanted this book then read about him on the Internet.'
It is unclear if the book mentions any of his criminal activities.
Colton's appearance before Dublin Circuit Court earlier this month is just the latest in a string of court appearances. As well as his theft conviction, he has previously been convicted after he acted as auditor while disqualified and producing false audit reports.
He was also in civil court over a €2.7m debt write-off which the High Court overturned in 2022 after discovering he had not disclosed that he and his wife owned a villa in Lanzarote villa.
In a 2022 judgment, Mr Justice Alexander Owens said a 'spending spree' on the Spanish property, with accompanying renovations, said to be worth €400,000, was taking place while the couple's personal insolvency practitioner was formulating proposals for their debt plan.
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