A TRICKSTER fleeced a pub out of £200 by performing a "slight of hand" hustle.
The smartly dressed crook struck at the Treacle Mine pub in Grays, when he bizarrely asked staff to swap his £20 note for a note containing an "F" in the serial number.
He said he wanted the special note because he was returning to France and "F stood for France".
As the bartender removed a wad of notes from the till the con artist looked at them and then appeared to return them.
The ruse was discovered after the crook had left when a bartender noticed £200 was missing.
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