British grandmother arrested over Majorca food poisoning ‘fraud’
‘Debbie says 100 per cent she hasn’t done anything wrong and it’s all confusion’
A WEALTHY British grandmother detained by Spanish police investigating a food poisoning scam involving UK holidaymakers declared last night she had “100 per cent done nothing wrong”.
Debbie Cameron, 59, and her daughter Laura Joyce, who is said to be heavily pregnant with her third child, were taken into custody after a raid on the Majorca family villa overlooking the Mediterranean on Tuesday.
The operation was part of a series of raids on properties and businesses on the island in an investigation into allegations that British holidaymakers have been filing false legal claims for food poisoning. The alleged fraud is said to have cost local hoteliers millions of pounds.
Mrs Cameron, who describes herself on Facebook as “the happiest networker in the world”, is a well known fixture on the holiday island and has been at the centre of British expat life there for more than 30 years.
She is the daughter of a wealthy businessman, who ran car dealerships in the UK, and made her own fortune in Majorca as an entrepreneur and lifestyle guru. Her own blog, Rich Mum, contains the mantra: “Have Fun. Make Money. Do Good.”
Laura Joyce, said to be in her late 20s, remained in Spanish custody last night with her mother frantically trying to have her released.
Mrs Cameron’s brother Gary Grimstead, 60, who lives in Hornchurch, Essex, told The Daily Telegraph: “Debbie says 100 per cent she hasn’t done anything wrong and it’s all a confusion. She’s back at home and is OK. They arrested her and then let her go. [The police] have given her her passport back and apologised. But my niece is still in custody and all my sister wants to do is get her daughter out. All we are concerned about is Laura. She is due [to give birth] in the next month.”
Mrs Joyce’s husband Stephen, who runs and owns Heroes Sports Bar on the island, declined to comment.
Judicial sources have been quoted in Spanish media claiming that the British women were suspected of being ringleaders in the alleged fraud, which involves deploying touts at hotels to entice tourists into faking gastric illnesses in return for compensation.
Five other people, whose nationalities are not known, were also said to have been detained.
Mrs Joyce had earlier denied involvement after she was linked to the investigation in the Majorca press.
Police sources said the arrests followed months of investigation after complaints from hoteliers, and that a “wealth of material” including computers and documents had been seized and was being analysed.
One local hotel operator alone reported fraud to the tune of €4million (£3.65 million), according to the Diario de Mallorca.
British authorities recently announced plans to stop the phenomenon of fake holiday illness claims, which has become rife across Spain.
In the Balearic Islands alone, the practice is estimated to have cost hoteliers €50 million (£45.6 million) last year.