A super fare dodger, who saved thousands of pounds by commuting into the capital with forged train tickets, has received a suspended prison sentence.
St.Pancras International
Construction worker Rory Stickles, 46, who was employed by Network Rail via an agency saved at least £27,959 in fares when travelling from his Kent home to St. Pancras.
At Inner London Crown Court he was sentenced to twelve months imprisonment, suspended for two years and ordered to pay a £10,000 fine.
Stickles, of Wakefield Way, Hythe claims he bought the tickets from an unidentified person and did not know they were forged, but conceded they were not legitimate.
An expert calculated the potential loss could have been as high as £85,546.
He pleaded guilty to one count of fraud by false representation, plus nine counts of possession of an article for use in fraud.
Stickles' dodge came crashing down at 9.20pm on January 26, last year when his ticket was examined at the St. Pancras International railway station barrier.
He presented a staff ticket, which was out of date.
Upon further inspection, the member of staff noticed further inconsistencies and believed it to be fraudulent.
The member of rail staff then showed the ticket to British Transport Police officers and explained the situation.
Stickles was searched on the spot by police and found to be in possession of nine tickets and passes believed to be fraudulent.
The tickets dated back to 2019, amounting to four years’ worth of journeys made fraudulently between Folkestone and St Pancras International.
These were seized, checked, and confirmed to be counterfeits.
Investigating officer Police Constable Matthew Spencer said: “Stickles’ fraud covered four years resulting in a significant loss of revenue to Southeastern.
“He believed he was above other rail passengers in not having to pay the full fare. This is not a victimless crime, with losses like this impacting the honest fare-paying public.
“We will not tolerate fraud on the rail network and we will do everything in our power to bring offenders to justice.”
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