Serial romance fraudster who scammed three vulnerable women out of thousands of pounds back behind bars

Raymond McDonald, of no fixed abode, began relationships with the women through dating apps earlier this year whilst lying about his profession.

He claimed to be a probation officer who could access cheap goods through his line of work, manipulating his multiple ‘girlfriends’ into sending him thousands of pounds for which he never provided the goods or returned the money.

The 51-year-old also asked for funds in the promise of buying a house together, going on holidays abroad and planning a wedding.

One of the women he was in a false relationship had even been taken to Dubai by McDonald, where he pretended to marry her in an unlawful ceremony.

His true identity was uncovered when one of the victims saw his picture on a social media site entitled ‘are we dating the same guy?’ where multiple people exposed him as a fraudster.

In March this year, McDonald, who was previously jailed in 2016 for seven-and-a-half years for the same offence, was arrested and later charged with three counts of fraud by false representation.

In April, he appeared at Newcastle Crown Court where he pleaded guilty to all offences.

And on Friday, August 30, he appeared back at the same court – where he was jailed for four-and-a-half years. He was also given lifelong restraining orders in respect of each of the victims.

Detective Constable Saad Sheban, who led the investigation for Northumbria Police, said: “The victims have been incredibly brave throughout the investigation and I want to thank them for speaking up.”