THE sister of conman William Davenport said last night he and his fugitive wife Ann had "sold their souls to the devil".

Gisele Dobson contacted The Northern Echo after learning of the pair's involvement with a £3m con which saw them secure historic Windlestone Hall, the 30-bedroom childhood home of former prime minister Sir Anthony Eden.

Davenport was jailed for six years on Wednesday after Teesside Crown Court heard he convinced Durham County Council to sell him the Grade II* listed property near Rushyford by claiming to be a Beverley Hills-based tycoon earning £430,000 a year.

His wife Ann and daughter Meaghan Smith, who are said to have been complicit in the con, have fled to the United States, where both have citizenship and face prosecution if they return to the UK.

After the case, The Northern Echo revealed how Davenport swindled his own mother out of her home and life savings, forcing her to bring a court case in which he was ordered to repay the cash.

And Ms Dobson told The Northern Echo: “I want him and Ann Davenport exposed. Everywhere they go they have left a trail of destruction."

Davenport, then known as Bill Green, told his mother Josephine he was buying a chateau in France and was given what was intended to be a short-term loan, which he claimed would be repaid from a £5m software ‘deal’ he was negotiating with Virgin entrepreneur Richard Branson.

Mrs Green sold her home in 2001 to finance the move, but it never happened and the now 85-year-old, who lives on the Isle of Wight, was left £120,000 out of pocket.

A subsequent civil case at Brighton County Court in 2003 ordered Davenport to repay the money, but to this day not one penny has been forthcoming.

Mrs Green said her son’s actions had left her homeless, while he stayed at the best hotels and drank champagne.

At the time Davenport, who claimed the cash from his mother was a gift, was running the Egerton stud farm, in Newmarket, and was described by a judge as “cavalier” in his financial dealings and not a credible witness.

The house bought by him was subsequently re-possessed, while Mrs Green, who is also known as Terry Green, was thrown out of a home rented from Davenport in an argument over money.

Ms Dobson said: "They just fleeced her (Mrs Green) completely and promised everything and delivered nothing.

“She does not want to know him (Davenport) anymore. He is out of her life and she would not want him at her own funeral.”

She added of father-of-three Davenport: “He is a clever conman. When I knew him he was an ideal brother and son and my mother gave him everything.

“I don’t know what went wrong, Ann has brought out the worst in him. They have sold their souls to the devil.

“He has turned his back on his old life and he is not the brother I knew."