Two year sentence for fraudulent ticket sales
A Birmingham man who conned thousands of pounds out of concert goers over 12 months in order to fund his cocaine habit was finally jailed last week.
Jay Carmen was handed the sentence after admitting numerous fraud offences where he advertised fictitious tickets on social media and auction websites, netting him £9,500 in total to pay for his £200-a-day addiction.
Music fans across the UK were left out of pocket after paying up to £500 for Beyoncé tickets and £600 for admissions to the Isle of Wight’s Bestival festival but the tickets did not exist and never arrived.
Carmen, aged 27, also duped a number of horse lovers by selling expensive saddles for £465 on equestrian websites.
The offences all took place between February 2013 and March 2014. Carmen was caught when detectives traced the bank account he was using to transfer the funds and was arrested by officers in May 2014.
Carmen, of Pembroke Drive, Northfield, admitted 24 of the offences but denied six of them and the case went to trial at Birmingham Crown Court. But at the last minute, the fraudster changed his mind pleading guilty to all 30 crimes and was sentenced to two years in jail on Friday 20th March.
PC Richard Potts, from the force’s Economic Crime Unit, said: “Carmen – who was a legitimate businessman with a silver service and events management training company – used a series of false names as he did not want his perceived good name to be associated with the fraudulent sales.
“He lied to his girlfriend and a friend, saying he needed access to their bank accounts to facilitate funds transfers from his company, but in fact used them to accept payments from his fraudulent sales.
“The sentence handed to Carmen reflects the financial impact and stress his crimes had on his victims and he will be the subject of a Proceeds of Crime Act hearing in an attempt to recover some of the money lost.
“This case is also a timely reminder that – with the many sporting and music events on offer in the UK over the summer – people need to be on their guard against fraudsters like Carmen, and we’d advise anyone wanting to buy tickets for an event should only buy them from trusted websites or a legitimate ticket seller.”
