"Once they controlled the pensions these two invested the pensions into highly unsuitable products.
"Why did they do that?
"First of all, when they took control of the pensions they gave both gave themselves a hefty commission about which the pension holders didn’t know.
"Second, when they invested the pensions, they got another hefty commission. That is at the core. These two men put their own financial gain over of interests of the pension holders.
"They didn’t care about these people at all. All they cared about was the amount they could make from these people."
Jurors heard that more than £20mn of pension money had been transferred, with each couple making £1mn in just 18 months
The money was then channeled through bank accounts controlled by the wives to ‘reduce visibility’ on the husbands, said Mr Fenhalls.
Jurors heard that PCD, which was not registered in the UK, charged ‘inflated and concealed fees’ and put the pensions at risk.
Most of the targets held pensions with Equitable Life, a company where things had gone ‘badly wrong’ at the time.
"Equitable Life had not been trading for years and pensions were doing very badly.
"It is exactly the moment where a predatory financial adviser who knows what he is talking about can target people at their most vulnerable, and that is what Mark Kelly and Rikki Nicholls did", said Mr Fenhall.
The pair, who had previously worked for Equitable Life, took advantage of their ‘experience and understanding’ as well as their access to confidential pension details.
They went on to invest the money into ‘unsuitable and risky’ investments, without telling the pension holders what they were doing.
"What they were doing is to get these people to sign blank forms and filling them out themselves,' said Mr Fenhalls.
"And ask yourself, if you are sure that is what they were doing, how can they ever be honest.
"How can it ever be honest to target pension holders like that?"
Impact statement
In an impact statement read to the court John Braddick, 77, said his losses had caused him ‘physical, emotional and mental suffering.’
Mr Mills said: ‘His life was put on hold. He could not plan his future’ and he spent less time with his wife due to ‘unnecessary strain on their relationship.’
Mr Braddick who was undergoing treatment for various conditions feels ‘completely betrayed.'
John Savage, 59, said he now suffers from severe depression and from low self-esteem. "I feel stupid for having fallen for such a scheme", he said in his impact statement.
Geoffrey Williams, 65, described the experience as a ‘nightmare’ and said the whole affair is always in the background.
