Former Brookside actor who went on the run to Spain is jailed for nine years over £13.6m modelling scam

Judge David Dixon told Philip Foster, 51, 'You were a coward' for hiding abroad while his co-accused came to court. Foster, who played villain Christian Wright in Brookside, ran sham agencies that took money from more than 6,000 victims. He got eight-and-a-half years in his absence in February 2025, with six months added for absconding. Spanish police held him in Alicante in September before his extradition.

The judge said Foster bought designer watches and a Porsche for his daughter, and posed on yachts.

His barrister said Foster's wife died of cancer and son Michael was murdered around Christmas 2025.

Spanish officers seized €22,000 and several false documents from his home.