Worksop: Fraud victim issues warning after being falsely sold tickets

A Worksop man who sold fictitious tickets for sporting events over the internet will be sentenced for fraud next week.
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Adam Moxon, 29, of Elms Road, pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing and will be sentenced at Nottingham Crown Court on Wednesday 26th November.

He was convicted of eight counts of fraud by false representation and one count of theft.

Between June and July of 2014 Moxon used his own name and twitter account to advertise sets of tickets which he was selling through website Gumtree.

The tickets, for tennis tournament Wimbledon and Royal Ascot, were priced at between £300 and £500 but were non-existent.

And when buyers who had parted with their cash failed to receive their tickets they reported Moxon to Action Fraud.

One victim was Ashley Williamson, 32, of Walsall.

He saw an advert on Gumtree for two tickets to Wimbledon.

He said: “I saw these tickets and phoned Adam to arrange a payment for the tickets and where to meet him to collect them.“

“I transferred £100 directly into his bank account as a deposit and arranged to meet him to pay the outstanding balance and collect the tickets.”

“However, Adam didn’t show up when I went to meet him.”

“It was a strange feeling as I had never experienced something like this before and we had spoken a few times on the phone so I thought it was legitimate.”

“This has made me more aware on the internet, especially on websites such as Gumtree for example as, unlike eBay, they don’t have much advice.”

“Though sometimes, when you want something so badly, you let your guard down a little bit. And paying money directly into someone’s account is something I’ll always be cautious of in the future, but at the time, I really wanted the tickets so didn’t take as much caution as I should have.”

“You need to be careful on the internet and take time to think about the purchases you are making and consider the potential dangers.”

“There still needs to be a certain amount of trust in life but some people take advantage of that.”

Det Con Graham Millar, of the Notts Police Fraud Department, said: “Be very wary of ticket offers for ‘sold out’ events as these situations are exploited by fraudsters.”

“Remember, if it’s too good to be true then stop and consider if the offer is genuine.”

“If you have lost money to a ticket scam or have identified a scam but been subject of a loss then please report it to Action Fraud either online or 0300 123 2040.”

“Help the police identify the fraudsters behind these scams by providing as much information as possible about the incident, including the suspect name, address, email, phone bank account where available.”

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