A Serial conman who was jailed FOUR times for ripping off hundreds of kind-hearted people has finally apologised – from his prison cell.

Mark Maskell repeatedly pretended he was doing a fund-raising parachute jump for The Wellspring homeless charity in Stockport.

Maskell, 25, knocked on doors across the borough asking for cash.

On every occasion he said he was collecting for The Wellspring – but they never received a penny, despite helping the trickster when he was homeless.

Now Maskell, who was jailed for four months In February after targeting a house in Heaton Chapel, has written an apology from his prison cell at Forest Bank prison in Salford.

He wrote: “I am writing to offer my apology to all the people around the Stockport area I tricked out of money and to the Wellspring’s homeless soup kitchen.

“I know what I did was wrong and I knew I deserved to go to prison again for what I did.”

Maskell was also jailed for four months in 2006, for four months in 2007 and 19-months in 2008 for burglary after he used the parachute jump ploy to talk his way into a house.

In the letter Maskell admits conning hundreds of people and apologises to ‘every single one’.

He also says sorry to his mum.

Maskell offers to do voluntary work for the Wellspring to make amends.

Conned

He adds: “I conned hundreds of people over the years and I apologise to every single one, especially my mum for seeing her son in the papers for these crimes. “I am going to walk out of this gate a changed person.”

But Wellspring manager Jonathan Billings dismissed Maskell’s apology and said he isn’t welcome.

Mr Billings said: “We would never have him as a volunteer at any time, now or in the future.”

He is also angry that the fraudster has been splashing his ‘party lifestyle’ all over Facebook.

He said: “If you look through his Facebook posts they completely contradict everything he has said in his letter.

“By reading his Facebook it’s clear to see he’s been leading quite a comfortable party lifestyle, not quite the harrowing sob story Maskell would have us all believe.

“The Wellspring would like to make clear that we would never welcome Maskell anywhere near our building.

“We would be concerned for Mark’s safety. At the end of the day it’s the homeless and disadvantaged people who attend the project that Maskell has ripped off.”

One of Maskell’s victims, who asked not to be named, said he agreed with The Wellspring.

“It doesn’t quite ring true,” he said. “I would find it hard to accept that letter as it seems a little bit too glib and I accept what the manager at The Wellspring says.”