Spending Spree With MP Nadine Dorries' Credit Card

Quick Getaway: Cory Chin

Government minister Nadine Dorries’s credit card was cloned and used to try and buy an expensive jacket in a West End store as well as other goods, a court heard today.

The 63 year-old Conservative MP for Mid Bedfordshire is the Minister of State for Mental Health, Suicide Prevention and Patient Safety.

At Westminster Magistrates Court trainee engineer Cory Dominic Chin, 24, of Palmerston Road, Walthamstow pleaded guilty to using her Lloyds credit card to try and buy a £958 jacket on October 16, 2019.

Korri George McLean, 30, of Rayfield, Epping pleaded guilty to using the minister’s Lloyds credit card to buy £1,080 worth of items the following day on October 17, 2019.

It was not said if if that transaction was successful and McLean was bailed to appear for sentencing at Wood Green Crown Court, where he is in breach of a twelve-month suspended prison sentence.

Chin was placed on a 12-month Community Order, which includes 120 hours community service work and was ordered to pay £85 costs and a £90 victim surcharge.

The court heard Chin was originally charged with further failed uses of the card, totalling over £3,000, but these were dropped by the Crown Prosecution Service.

Prosecutor Mr Jason Seetal told the court: “The complainant, Nadine Dorries is a senior member of parliament, representing the Conservative Party.

Cornered: Korri McLean

“The Lloyds credit card belonging to her was retained and a fraudulent copy made.

“This attempt was unsuccessful, but a phone number and email address was given and that is how the defendants were tracked down.”

Chin’s lawyer Daniel Jones said: “The acquisition of her details while the card was in her possession must have had some degree of sophistication.

“The details were not acquired by Mr Chin, but provided by his co-defendant Mr McLean to obtain a high-value jacket.

“He did not know who Nadine Dorries was and that she was a member of parliament and she was not specifically targeted.

“His involvement is limited to this single relatively high transaction. It was blocked and there was no financial loss.

“He has no convictions, warnings, arrests or reprimands against him and he pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity.

“Her gave little or no thought to the consequences of his actions. He recognises know the distress and inconvenience caused to her by these offences and the consequences to him is that he will now have a criminal record.

“His mother’s home was searched by police officers and that was distressing and embarrassing for him and has had a sobering impact.

“He takes full responsibility for his behaviour and has remorse.

“He is a well-educated and hard-working man, a trainee engineer with a large telecommunications firm and he does not meet the need for any probation intervention.”

District Judge Vanessa Baraitser told Chin: “This was a deliberate attempt to use this lady’s bank card and you knew it belonged to someone else to obtain a luxury item for yourself.

“You are a man of good character with no convictions or cautions and you pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity and you.”