County Durham travel agent who defrauded 1400 customers is jailed
Lynne Barlow, who previously lived in Stanley, pretended to have cancer while defrauding over a thousand customers
Last updated 3rd Feb 2023
A travel agent, who previously lived in Stanley, County Durham, has been jailed for 9 years at Durham Crown Court today.
Lynne Barlow, 39, pretended to have cancer while defrauding more than 1400 customers in a £2.6 million con.
Barlow was the subject of a lengthy police investigation after victims came forward in 2020 to allege they had not received holidays they had paid for.
She appeared at Durham Crown Court earlier today, after admitting theft of £500,000 from one person, 10 counts of fraud and a money laundering charge totaling £1,688,220.
Barlow claimed to be suffering from a terminal illness while she was carrying out the con, the court heard at a previous hearing.
She did much untold damage to local travel agents who simply could not compete at the unrealistic prices.
Her first victims were family and friends and she used their savings before setting up an independent travel agency, in which she fraudulently sold holidays, claiming them to be ATOL and ABTA protected, Durham Police said.
But many of her customers were to find that the holidays they booked through her business were never paid for by her.
A local travel industry source said Barlow would offer deals such as a five star all-inclusive week in Dubai for just £500.
The source said: "She did much untold damage to local travel agents who simply could not compete at the unrealistic prices.
"We tried to tell numerous people it wasn't right but as some people were travelling and getting the holidays at these prices - she was clearly funding the shortfall with other people's money - they wouldn't believe it.
"We even contacted her ourselves and tried to call her out but she wasn't fazed in the least and actually tried to recruit us to work for her.
"She lied about having the relevant licences to trade.
"We contacted police but were informed that as people were getting their holidays, at this point there was nothing they could do.
"People were literally throwing money at her."
The industry source said: "Barlow told her customers the reason her holidays were so cheap was because travel agents - legitimate ones - were charging large mark-ups on holidays, when in fact it was her prices that were too good to be true."
After she admitted the charges, Judge James Adkin granted her bail but warned her: "It's prison, and a long prison sentence."
Detective Sergeant Alan Meehan, of Durham Constabulary’s Economic Crime Unit, who led the investigation, said: “Fraud is a horrendous crime and Barlow’s actions were appalling.
“She made a conscious and deliberate decision to do what she did. There were points at which she could have put a stop to it all, but she carried on and now she is now paying the price for her actions.
“Sadly, so many people have been affected by what she did, lives have been changed forever and some will never be the same again.
“Not only did Barlow offer holidays she could not deliver, but she also took advantage of the generosity and understanding of those around her, which has resulted in such far-reaching consequences.
“She wanted a quality of life she could not afford, which resulted in her defrauding her family, friends, and even complete strangers.
“This is one of the biggest fraud cases Durham Constabulary has ever dealt with and I would like to again thank everyone who came forward for their patience and understanding while we carried out what was a thorough but lengthy investigation.”
James Lewis, specialist fraud prosecutor with the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “Barlow acted with greed, using false promises and deceptive lies, to convince family and friends, as well as hundreds of customers, who all trusted her, to part with their money so that she could sustain her own lavish lifestyle.
“Fraud is an insidious crime and the cost to the many victims in this case has not just been financial; it has also caused huge emotional distress and extreme disappointment to devastated customers who had to find out their holiday did not actually exist at a time when the country was in the grips of the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Thanks to the thorough investigation by Durham Police and to all the victims who came forward to report her, we were able to bring Barlow to justice.
“We will now be taking steps to recover this money taken through Proceeds of Crime.”