Rich Kid's Quest For Infamy Was His Downfall

A SCOTS blackmailer who tried to con £50,000 from a mystery royal became involved with the Turkish mafia and believed he was a "criminal mastermind".

- JOHN DINGWALL

Socialite and playboy Ian Strachan was jailed in 2008 after he tried to sell a video for £50,000 showing a Buckingham Palace aide claiming he had been groped by a senior royal.

But now underworld photographer Brian Anderson has revealed how Strachan was desperate to become a gangland kingpin on his release from prison.

Anderson, who snapped the crook, from Aberdeen, on numerous occasions, said: "Strachan was a bit of a character. He came from a wealthy family and wanted to be remembered for something.

"He was obsessed with fame or infamy and that was his downfall."

Anderson, 55, has featured Strachan in a new book he has produced on some of Britain's most notorious crooks called Faces 2.

Revealing how Strachan was desperate to become a big-time criminal, Brian said: "The first time I met Strachan was in the Green Lanes part of London. He introduced me to the Turks, who were really dangerous guys. This was the Turkish mob who were drug dealers.