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Leeds Students Jailed for £140,000 UK Rail Refund Fraud Exploiting System Flaw

The court detailed a scheme that leveraged missing cross-checks between bookings and delay records to trigger payouts on canceled tickets.

Overview

  • British Transport Police uncovered the operation and brought the case to Leeds Crown Court.
  • One defendant received 30 months in prison while the other got 17 weeks after being found less involved.
  • The pair booked large volumes of tickets, canceled them, then claimed compensation when services ran late, exploiting absent cross-checks.
  • Investigators said they cycled through false profiles, opened several bank accounts, and used about 20 SIM cards to mask activity.
  • Media reports differ on the defendants’ nationality, though all agree the fraud totaled roughly £140,000 from 2021 to 2025.