A Who Wants To Be A Millionaire contestant jailed over a spread betting fraud has been ordered to pay back £4million in ill-gotten gains.

Jeff Arundell, 75, tricked friends with promises of a “risk-free” investment and is serving a six-and-a-half-year prison sentence, imposed in 2023, after being convicted of offences including fraud and money laundering.

Now he has been told to repay the money after a court ruled he had made millions through dishonest financial activity.

Arundell, from Bath, Somerset, returned to Bristol Crown Court for a hearing under the Proceeds of Crime Act, where a judge assessed the benefit he had gained from his crimes.

On 19 December 2025, Judge Blair ruled that Arundell had profited by £4.8 million and ordered him to pay £4,140,428.59.

More than £220,000 of that total will be used to compensate those who lost money. If the sum is not paid, Arundell will receive an additional eight years in prison.

Jeff Arundell on ITV quiz show Who Wants To Be a Millionaire? in 2000 | ITV

placeholder image — Jeff Arundell on ITV quiz show Who Wants To Be a Millionaire? in 2000 | ITV

In an episode of the ITV show aired in 2000, Arundell answered just six questions correctly before walking away with only £1,000. He needed to use the 50/50 to correctly answer that an anaconda is a snake.

DCI Carlos Filippsen, of Avon and Somerset Police, said: “This is a significant result against an offender who was convicted of fraud and money laundering offences in November 2023. The convictions and subsequent confiscation orders in this case show how we will pursue offenders who directly target victims, including stripping them of any assets they have gained through crime.

"Ensuring that we have been able to return those funds to the victims and for the perpetrator to not be able to benefit from his criminal activity demonstrates our commitment to ensuring that crime does not and will not pay.

"I hope this will deter other criminals who may be involved in these despicable offences, by showing that they will be convicted and have their ill-gotten gains removed.”

'Who Wants To Be A Millionaire' was one of the most talked about shows of the year - with Chris Tarrant fronting the first episode of the long-running quiz show in September. It took until November 2000 for the jackpot to be won for the first time - by Judith Keppel. | ITV

The case dates back to late 2016, when Arundell persuaded a friend to invest after claiming he had advance knowledge that shares in a pharmaceutical firm were about to surge.

Family members were also drawn in, and around £108,000 was handed over.

He assured them their money was safe and said he would personally cover any losses.

Instead, the cash was used on spread betting. Within weeks, Arundell told the group the money had gone and that he could not repay them.

Police later discovered that some of the bets had been profitable. Arundell kept those winnings hidden and continued trading, eventually building up millions in profit by August 2017.

The victims reported the matter to police in January 2017, leading to a detailed investigation.

During inquiries, Arundell claimed he could have repaid the money because he had received funds from his late mother’s estate. That explanation led officers to uncover a separate offence.

It emerged Arundell had taken money from his mother while acting under a power of attorney, before her death, reducing what other family members would later inherit.

He was convicted of abusing that position in 2021.

In 2023, he was found guilty of three counts of fraud by false representation and one count of money laundering linked to the money taken from his friend and their family, though he was cleared of one additional fraud charge.