text: Eight years after their son was brutally murdered by the man he loved, Sue and Charlie MacDonald are still wondering what they could have done differently to prevent his death. The couple raised Gareth and his three brothers in the tiny isolated welsh village of Rhewl-Mostyn and now regret that they didn't teach him to be more 'streetwise.' 'Gareth wasn't street wise, he was too trusting and as a parent, that's where you think maybe I've failed him,' Sue reveals on the latest episode of TV show Britain's Darkest Taboos. Scroll down for video . Charlie MacDonald is still grieving for the son he lost eight years ago at the hands of his conman lover . Gareth met Glen Rycroft, 37, of Salford, Manchester, in a gay online chat room and they started a dating in 2005. Over the course of their relationship, Rycroft conned Gareth out of thousands of pounds and when his lover finally got wind of his theft and deceit and threatened to go to the police, he murdered him. Gareth was only 30 when he was killed in 2007. Rycroft had lured him to a Travelodge at Heston services on the M4 near Heathrow airport on September 15, 2007, where he fatally hit him over the head with a fire extinguisher. When Gareth's body was discovered, Rycroft claimed he had not been with Gareth that evening and said a rent boy was to blame. But police were able to gather enough evidence to prove Rycroft was involved - including internet searches on his computer on the best way to kill a man by striking him on the head. Gareth, pictured, was killed at the age of 30 after he discovered his boyfriend was conning him and his family out of money . Rycroft was found guilty of murder in 2009 and sentenced to life in prison, serving a minimum of 25 years. Eight years later, Sue and Charlie and still dealing with their grief and are still blaming themselves for failing to see Rycroft's true colours before it was too late. Sue said he seemed like a 'caring man' when Gareth first brought him home to meet them. 'He just came over as a caring person and nothing was too much trouble. He was a charmer,' she said. Gareth and his parents weren't the first to have been taken in by Rycroft. When he met Gareth, he was actually on probation having been released from prison for committing fraud. In his twenties, he had scammed friends and family out of thousands of pounds by pretending to have cancer and organising fundraising events where the money for 'charity' went straight into his pocket. He worked as an air steward for British Airways and also conned strangers and colleagues by telling them he could make them money through an investment opportunity he had been given by the company. Through his fictitious investment opportunity and cancer con he made thousands of pounds which he used to fund a lavish lifestyle, going on exotic holidays and driving expensive sports cars. Such was his love of the high life and charming manner - which hid his true deceitful personality - he was dubbed 'the real Talented Mr Ripley' when he appeared in court after the character made famous by Matt Damon. Debbie Henley, a former colleague of Rycroft explains: 'Glen had forged a letter head from British Airways, saying that British Airways were offering employees and friends and family the opportunity to invest in British Airways, whatever they invested they would get three times back within six months. 'Glen went around the local community offering this investment, to whoever he could. They didn't have a lot of money themselves they were vulnerable. 'He was going on holiday in Barbados and running around in soft top cars, he lived the high life with other people's money.' It was Debbie who eventually suspected Rycroft's investment opportunity was not all it seemed after she became embroiled in his cancer con. She and other friends believed he was dying of the disease as he had been shaving his own head and cracking blood capsules in his ears to make it appear he was having seizures. When Debbie realised Rycroft wasn't a cancer victim and was conning his friends into donating money, she reported him to the police. This lead to his four year imprisonment for the cancer and British Airways investment scams. A friend who fell victim to Rycroft at this time said: 'The effects of Glen’s callous acts will impact on us for a long time to come. Glen Rycroft was jailed for life for murdering Gareth by striking him round the head with a fire extinguisher . She continued: 'Glen systematically targeted friends and family who were more than willing to help and support a friend in need. For our loyalty and trust, we were rewarded with betrayal and a lot of heartache.' But these victims were luckier than Gareth, who paid with his life after being conned by Rycroft. While the conman was committing his crimes in Salford, back in Wales, Gareth had started a relationship with a woman and had two daughters. However, he struggled with his sexuality and the couple separated when Gareth realised he was gay. He started seeking a relationship with a man at the same time Rycroft was released from prison and they began their relationship with Gareth oblivious of his lover's criminal past. Rycroft began to con Gareth out of money and convinced Sue and Charlie to also give him money. Charlie said he promised them a 'holiday of a lifetime' and they gave him hundreds of pounds towards a deposit as they had no reason to suspect their son's boyfriend wasn't honest. 'He told me he was with the airline business and he was quite wealthy,' Charlie said. The couple were told he said he could get a luxury holiday on the cheap through his connections and discounts but they'd have to pay a deposit. During the course of his relationship with his son, they paid Rycroft thousands and Charlie admits that after a while he began to think 'this fella has taken us for a ride.' It was a conclusion Gareth also eventually came to and when he confronted his lover and threatened to go to the police, he was murdered. Sue said they were stunned when they were told their son's body had been discovered with fatal head wounds. 'You feel as though it’s not happening, that it’s in a book or a film or something and somebody is going to come along and say, you know it's not real. And you think like that for a long time, that it’s not real,' she said. Now Rycroft has been brought to justice and jailed, the parents are trying to move on and keep their son's memory alive for their grandchildren. Charlie said: 'It doesn't get any easier, you just learn to cope differently with it. Gareth would say life's for living and that's what he did - he lived life to the full, he enjoyed life, he loved people.' Britain's Darkest Taboos is on the Crime and Investigations Channel Sunday at 9pm .
target: Gareth MacDonald was murdered by Glen Rycroft in 2007 .
  Fatally struck across head with fire extinguisher by his lover .
  He'd discovered Rycroft had been conning him and his family out of money .
  Gareth's parents wish they could have prevented their son's death .