A duo accused of defrauding more than 100 victims out of £5.2 million in a gambling investment scam have appeared in court.

Nathan Burgoyne, of Wingham, and Paul Northcott, of Crystal Palace, are accused of targeting investors in Folkestone and beyond between July 2017 and May 2021.

Victims are said to have been persuaded into putting money into a complex online betting process called Apex Algorithms.

Burgoyne, 33, and Northcott, 61, were charged with conspiracy to defraud, fraud by false representation, and an offence of carrying on business of a company with intent to defraud creditors for other fraudulent purposes.

The duo, who were also charged with money laundering offences, did not enter pleas while appearing at Maidstone Magistrate’s Court on Friday.

The court heard between 120 and 140 investors from the UK and abroad were persuaded to put money into the complex online betting scheme.

Magistrates were told detectives had been investigating claims falsified information was used to advertise the scheme including inaccurate forecasts of potential and actual profits, and that victims also received false returns.

The pair were first arrested in December 2020 when search warrants were executed at locations including an office in Folkestone.

Following a lengthy investigation by the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate, Burgoyne, of High Street, Wingham, and Northcott of Essex Mews, Crystal Palace, were charged in April.

Burgoyne, 33, from Wingham, near Canterbury and Northcott, 61, from Crystal Palace, London, appeared in court via video link.

Their cases were sent to be heard at Maidstone Crown Court, with a preliminary hearing set for next month.

Both were granted bail until then.