The Canoe Man Hoax: How John Darwin Faked His Death
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- Опубліковано 9 січ 2023
- This full-length documentary features the remarkable story of a British prison officer alleged to have faked his own death in a dramatic canoeing accident. Joe McIntyre's idol secretly re-emerged to spend his own life insurance money in a series of lavish and exotic adventures.
From " Back From The Dead: The John Darwin Story"
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He must have liked drama in his life for him to fly back to the UK specifically to claim he had lost his memory.
Ah, the 'Canoe Man'... The biggest crime is... It was a Kayak, not a bloody canoe!
I know. That drove me crazy. Nobody goes out into the open ocean in a canoe!
Calm Down!
Canoe, kayak. Tomato, tomatoe.
The guy who wrote the book talked about this. Basically 'canoe' got mentioned in the press and stuck on people's minds, so they just continued with it. Imagine the police issuing a statement, 'Erm, we would like to clarify the difference between a kayak and a canoe'. If it had been a ringo, the fraud was the most important story.
@@danjames4086 Also, in the UK, a kayak is considered a subtype of a canoe.
He wanted to claim the insurance "To TIDE us over" You cant make this up!! 😅
🤭🌊🛶
Maybe he thought the insurance co was a bank making loans😂
Wave goodbye to his past life.
☺️ I doubt he realized the pun in that.
Better than going to a loan shark 🦈
How incredibly Ironic that his name is Darwin
GUMBALL
Why ?
Touche!
They were cruel to their children by deceiving them, to let them grieve for the father they lost.
I appreciate the woman from Kansas saying that what they did to their sons was just as vicious as what they did to her because it's really true. Causing that kind of trauma for 5.5 years...no wonder they cut their parents off, how horrific
Oh I just love the music changes with each country listed 😂
The wife got a longer prison sentence than the husband. How odd!
Because she pleaded not guilty.
I wouldn’t have told baby John’s family. What’s to be gained but dredging up sadness?
They could've found out somehow eventually, that's unacceptable not to tell.
Because.....
Its the truth.
Lying to children about their family heritage never ends well.
The media would have investigated the source of his fake name and ID, and would have publicized it. Rather the family find out from investigators before that happens.
me too, they are obviously very upset, over reacting in my opinion, nothing to be gained from telling them at all. it was a victimless crime in my opinion, and they saying he is the lowest form of life ect,
There is NO WAY IN H*LL,I'd do that no matter how much debt I was in for my husband,NEVER!!
I'm NOT going to jail for you so I dont want to know what your going to do but whatever it is,LEAVE ME OUT OF IT!!! His wife is a fool for taking part in this scheme knowing she could go to jail for it!!!
@@A.Briggs628 grass
@@andyfowler8274 No, she's not a grass at all! Nobody in their right mind would get involved in their husband's criminal activities. Many ppl would report it to the police..
@@A.Briggs628 More ppl agree with you than Andy! Have a great day and don't give him a second thought.😁
@@nicolelillis2077 so we have 2 grasses on this thread
@@andyfowler8274 😅🤣😂
What if one of the 40+ people in the air & sea search crew died looking for him?!Truly a sad story, worst of all they lost their 2 sons, grandchildren…
well, he was alive and he got them back, alls well that ends well.
ya well that's their job, they signed up for it, don't discriminate, it makes everything worse!
You’re butthurt about that? It’s their job nobody’s forcing them 😂
I agree endangering lives for his own personal gain it's disgraceful!😒✌️
Not really he only speaks briefly to one of them.
They both of them knew what they were doing while sadly their two boys suffered. How could she go along for years making the family think he is dead while enjoying holidays with him. They are both wrong. End of.
Whats with the constant repetitive 'music' in your docos?! It sounds completely awful and on headphones highly irritating. Can't watch this.
Im from Hartlepool his home town and believe me when he went missing a lot of locals felt It was a lie as the tides were not correct to completely cause someone to vanish..
But no one would listen to a town full of people that hung a monkey!
@@richardgraham65 it wasn't us it was our anstrestors they thaught it was a French spy 🙊 😂
@@mckenna9489😂😂😂
Yep, I think locals knew the story didn't add up. He was spotted out and about by people who knew him.
The irony of planning to open an up market 'eco lodge' and offering canoeing holidays! 😱
You can run and you can hide for so long but your dark past will catch up with you eventually.
Good stories but the music is annoying & not necessary; it's distracting.
Dear RS, you inspired us to open our own "true crime" channel. Thank you!
I'm subscribed to your channel, best of luck!!
I subscribed to your channel.
@@KP-rh5qz Thank you! Let us know if you what you think about. Bye,
I'm subscribed. You have a good channel. I was subscribed already before watching this. Real stories do some stellar documentaries aswell. But I like your channel.
Thank you, cobra kai!
Sorry but 250,000 pounds isnt worth all of this, and landing in jail.
Hilarious badass story, if only he didnt pose for that photograph THEN walk into the police station giving himself away the daft bat. 🤣
Ikr they were successful in the con! I feel so bad for their sons. I don’t blame them for cutting off contact. I do wonder if there’s any money left and where is it 🤔 I hope the sons have it.
Then include his wife!
Yeah, very hilarious - not - especially if they happened to be your parents.
Yeah that was rather a stupid way to get caught! Their sons are assholes! lol
They said he only showed up at the police station because he knew the gig was up.
I nominate them the worst crooks of that year. WTF did he turn himself in for?
Because he knew the game was up. He was just sick of lying and running. The stress was taking its toll.
@@yodenmannah it wasn’t. So when they got a place in Panama the British police needed to confirm his identity. Of course he couldn’t do that being ‘dead’ he could have had Anne do it but no the narcissist thinks he knows best so he thought this plan would work. That’s the real reason he had to come back
There's a bitcoin scammer in your comments.
There's several of them. They're everywhere! YT needs to get it together!
Report them
What sane person lets a stranger come live in their house? The hotel should've been the first option, then he's in his own!! Why would you even go into business with someone you don't know? She's just as crazy as he is!
Exactly
I agree 💯
I agree, what an idiot, and she has children!!!
Peoples identity is stolen everyday. I would consider it worse to steal someones identity whose alive?? It’s an extremely difficult situation for someone to prove their own identity when someone has stolen it. What was the point of advising the other family of their dead siblings stolen Identity. Did they ever know their sibling??
Then they acted all dramatic about it like they were victims....LOL
Did he ever think of filing bankruptcy? It’s so much easy. It’s easy to fight collection, it’s just easy to fight debts than faking your own death and letting your children think that you are dead. Tf!
His Wife suggested exactly that. Have you watched the documentary?!🤔 The bankruptcy would not have provided the money that the lifestyle Darwin wanted to live.
In England it's different then in the U.S. The Banks would have taken everything. You can even go to prison for it.
He was terrified if bankruptcy. Basically the banks would have sold off everything at the minimum they needed to cleae the debt. He knew the market value of his property was much higher. He didn't just want to cleae the debt; he wanted to clear the debt AND pocket the profits. Bankruotcy would have left him with nothing.
I know what he did was despicable,at least he didnt murder anyone.
some people are just wicked,and dont care who they hurt or step on,to get what they want.
I remember when this happened. The UK birth and death registration system is a joke that births and deaths aren't even cross-references and anyone can get a copy of anyone's birth certificate (maybe changed recently but was like that for decades).
Famously this trick was first publicised by author Frederick Forsyth in "The Day of the Jackal" as the Jackal used it to adopt a fake persona.
The system is base on trust, until people abuse it.
whoah
Yes, I remember when this happened too!
@@te2393 The system is built by those who wanted to abuse it.
That's not a canoe. It's a kayak.
So the whole story is founded on a lie?😂
Correct! Not a canoe. It's a kayak!
Good eye Mr. Jetson!
Thank you! It's like they don't even do research anymore. Just write a story, slap some random stock footage, throw it on the internet, get paid, then do it all over again.
@@andrewsupp6693 When this case broke, many years ago, the British press coined the term "Canoe Man". Clearly it stuck. The error in boat type was pointed out at the time, in various media.
@@charleswhite758 Ahh, so it was the Brits fault! *shakes fist angrily*
What was the harm to the deceased baby!
He is an absolute narcissist. Poor woman I’m glad she got rid of him and now has contact with her sons
WHAT... They were both up for it. Always the Man is the nasty person while the Woman is innocent. I cannot believe a Mother would do that to her children. Both are scheming people.
2 peas in a pod mate, don't let her sheepish act fool you.
Sentenced to 6,5 years in prison only ???????????
That's the British justice system for you. Life for murder 15 years, some people have been out in 9 years for good behaviour..
Yes. Ridiculous.
Love how his last name is Darwin
People do this more than anyone realises..for various reasons..to avoid debt, and relationships, problems..just a fresh start..it's CRAZY..But it happened and happens
People rarely have their money organized in a way to make this happen suddenly. The ones that can prepare plan for years ahead and disappear in a heartbeat. You have to have a lot of cash squirreled away because any use of plastic can be tracked. Its a lot harder now than it ever used to be. 10x harder now unless you enjoy living in the wilderness which not one in a thousand urban dwellers have the skills to manage. I bet a lot of people needing to get away from their present life vanish in Mexico. That's one big country to get lost in.
Glad the kids weren’t charged 🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾
I saw Anne Darwin in a swanky hotel when I was on holiday in Spain.
Once I pointed her out to my friend, she told almost everyone in the dining room and at breakfast the next day everyone was gawping at her, she didn't notice.
Your friend sounds so cheap!
She’s so bloody dozy it’s no wonder she didn’t notice you😂
He was doing a lot in 5.5 years. Lord have mercy!
I don't understand why they would go bankrupt. Couldn't they just have sold their properties???
He probably didnt want to sell his property and also wanted to be rich. Selling his property that He still owed mortgages on he prob wouldn't get much back. Then he also is left without the houses as an asset. He was just to greedy!!
Probably had made personal guarantees on the loans, so the banks could come after all his assets.
*They are probably already out for good behavior...enjoying their life to the fullest...and the American woman certainly end up being the one profiting the most from the start...she probably never returned money to the U.K...*
Of course not then she claims she's a victim...lol
Kelley his supposedly business partner is a scam artist. That ranch was garbage and she s not working on it. The scammer got scammed😂
Kelley used his money and got rid of him. She is playing the innocent victim card. They all deserves each other.
All I'd like to know is did the mother give the children any money ?
It would've helped them during their time of fake grief.
All these fraudulent insurance cases make me very angry,while ever these criminals r living in the lap of luxury,we who have insurance policies,end up paying through the nose
There's an easy solution. Stop buying insurance. You'll probably drive better so it will significantly increase your odds of living a long life! And that skydiving! That's GOTTA stop.
Its almost impossible faking a death and collecting life insurance. What people don't realize is the insurance company who is fighting to not have to pay a huge claim, is far more determined to prove the death was faked than the police! And they have way more resources to throw at the problem than the police. That's why the smart people that need to disappear never, ever involve life insurance. Its by far the biggest motivation: A quick payout. Plus it was usually purchased just before they mysteriously vanished. The main legit reason people need to disappear is an abusive partner. Women are lucky in this area as a different hair style and color can radically change how they look. Add the frequent use of hats and glasses, especially those with a dark tint and they can be very hard to identify or recognize. And with the pandemic facemasks complete the process.
John got scammed by Kelly the irony of it all!
😂😂😂
I was wondering what happened with all that, because I figured after he sent her those threatening emails she had the right to use his money to protect herself and she deserves some payment for pain and anguish. It felt like he was taking all of his frustrations from his situation out on her.
Fascinating story.
The podcast "British scandals" has an excellent series on this...called "canoe con"
The wife got 3 months more jail time, but then again she pleaded not guilty
Not ideal lying to their sons, stealing the name, wasting police time and so on. But screw the insurance companies and their money. They have a license to steel. They deserve everything they get
What a great story though . . . Didn't know about the American 'ranch' part of the story; That gives some real insight into Darwin's personality.
Wonder if that woman ever did give him any return on his investment money? Or does she just get to say 'poor me' and keep it?
@@newgabe09 She scammed him out of the money with no consequences yet acted like a victim!
-perpetrators always-
-think they are the victims .. !-
If he changed his 'hairstyle' he could be a double for Richard Dawkins
Why are people able to get a copy of just anyone’s birth certificate? 🤷♀️
Money
Public records, open society. Surely whoever he showed it to should have asked for further proof of ID with the same name on it, that's the problem.
Dude pulled a Reginald Perrin!😏😂✌️
He had 13 houses n he decided to get some insurance money....
If he'd kept the houses he'd be a millionaire today.
So he gave himself up because he missed his sons. He is a very selfish man. Putting them through the grief of his death then deciding to cause them grief all over again by just turning up.
Actually, once they were in Panama, the pair discovered that it's illegal to live or work in that country without having your identity confirmed by British authorities. With a false passport, that idea was obviously a non-starter. One of the many weird things about this case is that he actually thought the Police would buy the amnesia story.
@@eileenflannigan709 Exactly!
I think the lady in Kansas sniffed some easy money and then used the money for her own expenses. What goes around comes around and living in fear was justified. She should have done everything she could to repay the money which was not hers in the first place. Greed breeds greed!
Then she acts like a victim! lol
The tears... the tears... the death is so fresh in their memories from 72 years ago!
Who's going to break the news of the deceased to his grandmother? Oh wait, she
died in 1890.
Exactly, nothing but crocodile tears to feed the media - he deliberately too the name as to not hurt anyone living. People should really be asking how public records are recorded, and how a death certificate does not nullify the use of the previous birth certificate! He did no harm to the family of the dead child, sickening to watch them blubbering on about it being the worst thing a man could do, get in the real world - Murder, Rape, paedophiles? That family were coaxed to cry for the cameras, they didn't appear to have the intelligence to think that one up. The one person I felt sorry for was for Kelley Steele.
This is about 20 years old. So, it was 52 years ago at the time of filming. But yeah, it was a bit over dramatic. It's sad, but he lived for 5 weeks and died before his siblings were born. How many "memories" can they really have? To cry was ridiculous.....
@@pogo9876they might see a chance to get some money out of it .. ? I don’t know. People also feel so much hate to ..-..whatever… it’s maybe a good opportunity for 🤮 out ??
I’m only guessing of course….
Yeah, that was some BS....I laughed the whole time they were blubbering lol
I don't understand why he didn't just get on with his life in Panama? Did he really think the police weren't going to do an investigation?
Its really, really hard to reinvent yourself when you're on the run. You have to develop different interests, habits, work, appearance, it wears people out. The fatigue builds over the years til they can't take it anymore. The crime may have only lasted a few minutes but boy do they pay for that in their own prison sentence of isolation. He made so many mistakes its a miracle he wasn't found out right away.
I think it’s a brilliant idea!
tfs nice show, but the music is way too loud ! tnx in advance
God, turn the music off
He threw her under the bus fast
@@A.Briggs628 I like how the scammer in the U.S. also acted like a victim even though she stole his money! lol
A book deal? He was/is a total creep. I bet he tries to profit from this crime.
So was the USA birth certificates,back in the day,you could find a child born around your birthday and if they died in the first year no death certificate was ever issues for that death so you can use it now things have changed.
After watching a couple of documentaries on this story although what Anne did was terrible especially letting her sons think their dad was really dead I get the strong impression that most of the blame should be pointed at John, he thought of the idea and not only insisted she follow his direction but mentally bullied her into it, she must have felt backed into a corner and felt she had no other choice, she told him on more than one occasion that she didn’t want to do it so his way round that was to further manipulate her and abuse her mentally.
She could have left him and stayed with friends or family but then maybe she didn’t feel strong enough and wanted to “keep the family together”
There's a fantastic British series on TV about this.
It's simply called Canoe Man.
Was it good.? Im thinking of watching it.
It should be called KAYAK man. What do they call canoes in the UK? Freighters? Its strange how one language can have different variations. Countries should get together and fix this. Its just stupid.
@@cobrakaicyberdon yes, an eye opener
There's a better one called, "The Man, His Wife and the Canoe". It was shown on ITV last year.
Not bad but it was filmed in Suffolk not Seaton Carew. The ITV drama was far superior. It was spread over three one hour long episodes. Much more detailed and was actually filmed in Hartlepool just a short distance from the actual location.
Why did he go to the police? That was always going to bring unnecessary ATTENTION to him. Silly Mr #Darwin
It is hard to think straight when you are under pressure. That remains true whether or not you put yourself in that position. It is a pity the wife did not insist on bankruptcy and instead conspired in the fraud.
0:18 A pun within the first 30 seconds of the video?
Interesting they both refer to eachother in the past tense. The wife I can understand got used to playing the game but in his mind it’s like she died as well.
she was in on it she wasnt innocent
Interesting case
Wot an absolute legend..... So close to pulling it off.......
Greed is despicable
With a last name of Darwin, you know he had to be full of lies and deception. Sad to what ends people go through for money. Worst part is lying to his family.
It amazes me that after only 6 1/2 years of jail time they can just get on with their lives? What about all the money they took from others through there deceit?😢
They only really took money from banks, pension and insurance companies. She ended up 1/4 million better off after selling the properties. It was fraud and money laundering. 6 years was actually classed as a pretty harsh sentence.
I think most of the damage was emotional to their children! He claimed he went back because of his boys but ended up living elsewhere with no contact due to showing absolutely no remorse and loving the media attention.She has regained the trust of both her children and is in contact with her grandchildren aswell.
People get let off with murder a rape. Who cares about fraud no one. Victimless crime I wished they git away with it if ot improved their life.
what a slap on the wrist they got
What cockamamie idea if there ever was one!
Wonder what happened to their household goods that were shipped to Panama?
Odd background music choice.
My thoughts too
Reminds me of that lottery lier guy who went to prison then got out and stole women's money 💰 and is still on the run in Thailand last I heard. I wonder if they've caught him yet?
no, not yet, I'm still in Thailand lol,🤣
@@robinwalsh9542 "Bad boys bad boys watchya gonna do, whatcha gonna do when they come for you. Bad boys Bad boys." 🎶 🎵
@@24Roxyx and kung fu to you also
@@24Roxyx who sang that song?
@@robinwalsh9542 it's from the TV show Cops.
My gf worked with Mark as soon as she saw his picture she said that looks like Mark a mate I worked with lol
Why does it say in the title My? He's not even making an appearance. I want him to answer to his crime and apologise. Very unhinged and kniving - what he said in an email to the American family. He's scary. He needs to answer to people.
He was "drowning" in debt 😂
Oh my goodness gracious
First comment is a ruse: don't respond and as well the comments thereto.
There's one right below your comment with around 13 replies. The comment section on this video is now full of them. I hope no one is daft enough to fall for their scheme!
It's a kayak.
One second. What's the problem with stealing an identity of a child who died 50 years ago? If you need an identity to steal... sure identity theft not cool, but isn't this a perfect option??
Yes. It is. Didn’t quite understand why that family was being so drama or why they even had to know in the first place .
I hope he faced charges in America also but I'm only part way through.
How did she even continue to work with him after his threats I don't understand.
And then after 2 weeks she just asked him to leaves... And he DID?? So she told him he couldn't live in the property he had paid for (I know I know but if she put any money in I miss that part) and he just said okay and left her with it? I am so confused
Ikr.. I wonder if she ever did give him a return/his investment back or did she just get to say 'poor me, I've got guns' and keep it.
@@newgabe09 That's exactly what happened. She basically scammed him and then claimed victim status.
On what charges? She scammed him out of his money or rather the insurance agencies money! lol
The workman made me laugh he said to his wife that they were strange people 😂
💰
"I don't know what you do in your country but we don't do that in America" guess what we don't do it in U.K.
so ...... at 11mins in some "muzak terd" wants to take credit for twilight zone theme song ???
Fancy doing something like that and then getting a photograph taken of you 2
to put on their website lol
Website is the clue the whole world will be able to access it through the WEB 🕸️ lol 🤣😂
well that Kelly Steele sounds to have been a bigger con artist than the canoe guy
He could have got away with had he been smarter . as for the hysteria of the family of the stolen ID . the child is in heaven and not worried about it but when cameras get on them they get so dramatic !!!!!
Was it really worth it. 🧐🧐🧐
Why do they ruin good documentaries with absolutely naff music 😂
It's not "stealing" if you willingly hand over the money
It's another step on darvinian Evolution.hehe
And they would have gotten away with it too if it wasnt for that pesky journalist that googled their names, clicked on the first link and found a photo of them together posing with some Panama estate agent. Im not even joking thats what actually happened, you can look this up.
Get a lawer man give the cops 20k each and walk away.
Absolutely telling how the Police in his hometown were so ineffective and lazy.
How? At the end of the day, they secured a conviction.
Fair enough, one might think they woukd have followed up on reports of him being around the area...but I guess cases get closed and they move on to other things.
@@danjames4086besides the obvious answer in your post that started with.....How ? My assertion that the police in his hometown were ineffective and lazy is there was no investigation that would lead to the obvious conclusion that drowning at sea wasn't the answer to the puzzle of his disappearance. He was swimming in debt. His mortgage holders were at his doorstep and a total collapse of solvency was eminent. Taking a statement from his wife was evidently all that was done. She's no criminal mastermind and judging from her interview shown in this video it wouldn't have taken much to shake her from her acertion. The police could have simply pressed her saying they had no body and weren't closing the case until they had one. They should have advised her it would be year's before a Court would agree to a presumption of death finding and she'd be left to try and work out their deficiencies with mortgage holder's. Instead of doing absolutely nothing they could have easily tracked her calls and finances and within weeks applied enough pressure for her and him to give up on the hoax. The opposite happened, they did nothing. They were ineffective and lazy. It was only after the husband decided to return because they'd been caught with another story that could be reputed did they act. There were two people who benefited from his disappearance and assumption of death and they didn't follow up with or investigate the one of the two benefactors.
He said, Need the insurance ?
He Wanted the money. What jerk to his wife.
the wife is bad as him , It seems he taking all the blame ,
She's despicable. If she was genuinely opposed to the plan, she wouldn't have played a critical role in carrying it out and then gone running as fast as her little legs could carry her to claim £250,000 in benefits.
Looks abit like Ronnie Biggs
I think Ronnie Biggs was a more decent human being.