£17k fraudster snared by wife
He is spared jail but must pay back every penny
ADATING fraudster fleeced a besotted student out of £17,000 to feed his raging drug and gambling addictions - until he was rumbled by his wife.
Tayyab Iqbal, a married father from Rochdale, gave a fake name and age to the woman and claimed he was a pharmacist in Birmingham whose business was in trouble.
But the 30-year-old was lining his own pockets thanks to her generosity to feed his addictions.
The ruse only came to an end when his wife contacted the victim and blew the whistle.
Iqbal, of South Street, Rochdale, admitted a charge of fraud and appeared to break down as he clasped his hands to his face at Birmingham Crown Court on Friday, moments before his punishment was confirmed.
But he was spared immediate imprisonment and instead was sentenced to 12 months in jail, suspended for two years.
He was also ordered to pay back every penny to the victim.
Syed Ahmed, prosecuting, said: “The defendant met the victim on an online dating platform in June 2019. From the outset he provided a false name and date of birth. He also claimed to be a pharmacist and partner at a pharmacy business in Birmingham.
“The victim was a university student at the time. During the relationship the defendant claimed to be in financial difficulty with his business and asked to borrow money.”
Over the course of ten months Iqbal manipulated £17,150 out of the victim.
“She continued to make payments until she received a call from the defendant’s wife informing her of the fraud and informing her he had children and was married,” added the prosecutor, who said Iqbal confessed to police he was in debt due to drug and gambling habits.
Rajinder Gill, defending, said Iqbal had a ‘difficult’ upbringing which had led him to misuse drugs. He said Iqbal had ‘turned his life around’ since his arrest by repairing his marriage and obtaining work with HM Revenue & Customs.
Passing sentence, Judge Penelope Stanistreet-Keen told him: “You targeted a young Muslim woman on a dating app. She thought it was a safe space where she could meet someone.
“The harm was not just financial. She failed papers at university. She didn’t have a lot of money.
You continued to lie to her even after your wife blew the whistle. You used an app that deleted messages after six days. You manipulated and exploited her. These were despicable actions.”
Iqbal must carry out up to 30 days of rehabilitation activity, particularly to address his drug and gambling issues, and pay the victim compensation at a rate of £500-a-month. A restraining order banning him from contacting her was also imposed.