A woman who defrauded a man she met on Tinder of more than £10,000 through a web of lies, then fled to China for five years, has been jailed for 26 months.
Amie Ford, 30, of Mortimer Avenue, Westerhope, Newcastle, met the victim on the dating app in October 2017. He believed they were building a loving relationship, but she was conning him out of money through fake correspondence purporting to be from a solicitor, banks, Northumbria Police and her aunt.
The fraud spanned 11 months, from October 2017 to September 2018. Ford pleaded guilty to fraud by false representation and was sentenced at Newcastle Crown Court.
How the fraud unfolded
The offending began in October 2017 when Ford told the victim she and her aunt were stranded in Portugal after Ryanair flight disruption due to a strike and needed money to return to the UK. In reality, she had only booked one-way flights. He sent her £691.41 for accommodation, flights and vehicle hire, but three cheques she sent to repay him bounced.
She then persuaded him to transfer a further £1,060, claiming her funds were frozen pending clearance of the cheques. On October 20, 2017, she provided forged correspondence purporting to be from a firm of solicitors concerning a compensation claim against Ryanair, claiming £6,500 had been secured for the victim, herself and her aunt. Believing this, he transferred £5,800 to her, retaining about £700 to cover his earlier losses.
Shortly after, they began what the victim thought was a romantic relationship. Ford did not view it as such but did nothing to correct him. They went to Manchester together, which he called the best trip he had ever been on, and she arranged for their hotel room to be decorated with birthday balloons for him.
Fake police and bank communications
From October 2017 onwards, Ford maintained the deception through communications purporting to originate from the solicitors, Lloyds Bank, NatWest Bank, IKANO Bank, Northumbria Police and her aunt. These were designed to reassure the victim and explain away failed payments, dishonoured cheques, loans and unauthorised transactions.
In December 2017, the victim became concerned and attended Lloyds Bank in Whickham, where staff told him the documents and emails purporting to come from Lloyds were not genuine and advised him to contact the police. Ford then arranged contact with police through her own connections, and he received communications falsely purporting to come from a Northumbria Police fraud investigation unit, which told him transactions on his account were part of security checks and all monies would be refunded.
The victim disclosed extensive personal and financial information, including bank account details, passwords, passcodes, identification documents and payment card details. This was used to facilitate further fraudulent activity, including a Lloyds Bank loan application for £6,500, a payday loan of £80 later increasing to £159 with interest, a £1,500 loan secured against his vehicle and a mobile contract costing £21.99 per month.
Victim left traumatised
By May 2018, the victim had diverted his wages to his mother's bank account because he feared further losses. The fraud came to an end in September 2018 when he contacted Ford's aunt via Facebook, who said she had no knowledge of the Ryanair compensation claim, banking difficulties or correspondence. Ford then accepted the matter had been a scam.
The victim estimates his direct financial losses at between £10,000 and £12,000. He said the fraud was "the hardest thing I've ever had to endure" and "a prolonged betrayal by someone I trusted and genuinely believed I was building a relationship with". He said it seriously impacted his credit score, affected his ability to get a mortgage, and left him suicidal at one point.
Ford remained outside the UK for around five years after the offending. In July 2023, she was arrested upon arrival at Newcastle International Airport after returning from Lanzarote.
Recorder Nick Turner told Ford: "They were calculated cynical and heartless. He met you on Tinder and became very fond of you, a fact you exploited mercilessly." He added: "The only word I can find to describe this behaviour is heartless."
Ian Hudson, defending, said Ford is a full-time carer for her grandmother, helps with her autistic nephew, and went to China after the fraud where she worked in teaching.
