Footballer took out insurance policy minutes after smashing his BMW into three parked cars

23.02.2022 - 21:17 / manchestereveningnews.co.uk

A fraudster footballer took out an insurance policy minutes after crashing his BMW into three parked cars - then lied about when the accident happened.

Pa Omar Mbowe, 25, bought a one-hour insurance policy following the four-car smash in south Manchester.

He ploughed his BMW 116i Sport into the back of one parked car, which bounced into the next car and then into another vehicle.

The footballer, who has played professionally for clubs including Macclesfield Town, took out the policy between 6.20am and 7.20am.

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He claimed the crash happened when he tried to avoid a pothole while travelling through Hulme at 6.35am - just 15 minutes after the policy started.

But the next day, the insurance company was contacted by another firm who claimed Mbowe had been involved in an accident with one of their policyholders after falling asleep at the wheel at 7am.

These discrepancies, paired with the fact Mbowe's policy had been taken out minutes before the accident, prompted the insurer to refer the case to the Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department (IFED).

An investigation discovered a vehicle crash report had also been made to Greater Manchester Police at 6.17am on April 29, 2018 - proving Mbowe fiddled the timings so it looked like he was insured at the time, according to police.

However, the footballer showed remorse for his actions after admitting the offence during an interview with detectives.

He told them he had already given money to the owners of the damaged vehicles, police said today.

Mbowe was handed a conditional caution under the agreement he would cover the costs of repairing two of the cars and any losses to the insurer of