A conman faces jail after defrauding Harrods out of hundreds of thousands of pounds of goods - including a £183,000 watch.

Philip Buffett, 49, of Fairfield Road, Croydon, had carried out the fraud by utilising a personal shopper service offered by the world famous department store in Knightsbridge.

He paid in a cheque on what is now known to be a closed account and on the basis of the fraudulent cheque - to the value of £245,000 - he bought goods from the store.

On 24 April he collected the property from the store - a Hublot watch (worth £20,000) and a Hublot watch (worth £183,000), a camera and high-value clothing.

Subsequently the store discovered that the cheque was fraudulent and police were alerted -  who made him a wanted man.

He was already known to have served time in prison for other frauds - under a previous identity Mark Cas - including conning money out of elite UK athletes with the promise of lucrative sponsorship contracts in the build up to the London Olympics in 2012.

On May 28 Buffett flew into Gatwick Airport from Monaco and was arrested by local Sussex officers and handed to the Metropolitan Police.

He was taken to Notting Hill police station and was charged as above.

He pleaded guilty at West London Magistrates' Court today to fraud by false representation, to the value of £245,000.

A date for sentencing has not yet been set.

DS Richard Keene of Notting Hill CID said: "Buffett is a conman who has already served time for earlier frauds.

"In March 2011 he was sentenced to three years' imprisonment for conning money out of elite UK athletes with the promise of lucrative sponsorship contracts in the build up to the London Olympics in 2012.

"He was then known as Mark Cas (a.k.a. Mark Roger Castley) and had been convicted at Croydon Crown Court on two counts of fraud by false representation.

"He had already pleaded guilty to seven charges of fraud by false representation, for which he was sentenced to two years to be served concurrently. He was found not guilty of two further charges of fraud by false representation.

"He will now face a judge once again, after his latest court appearance.

"As to the property he obtained from Harrods, we have recovered some of the clothing. We know he sold the more expensive watch for cash, and are attempting to recover that. Similarly we are trying to trace the other items he obtained."