Wedding guest scam ruins dream ceremony in Thailand
A tale of deceit and dashed dreams emerged when a 41 year old British woman conned friends, including a bridesmaid, out of thousands for a Thailand wedding.
The scandal unravelled just days before Elaine and Marc Walker’s nuptials, leaving the bride’s mother footing the bill for guests’ flights.
In a twist of events, 41 year old Natalie Green was instructed to reimburse funds she duped from numerous individuals, including the sole bridesmaid, rocking the wedding plans of Elaine and Marc Walker from Peterhead in Aberdeenshire in 2022.
Elaine, whose mother ultimately covered the expenses for friends’ travel to Thailand, lamented that the fraud tainted her once-in-a-lifetime celebration. Green confessed to orchestrating a fraudulent ploy, deceiving a total of 19 people by promising to arrange travel and accommodation for Thailand, along with a lodge in Banff, resulting in payments totalling £7,547 (approximately 340,000 baht) between January 2021 and August 2022.
At Peterhead Sheriff Court, Green received a two-year supervision order and was mandated to refund the outstanding £5,697 as compensation, having already reimbursed £1,650.
Elaine Walker revealed to BBC Scotland News the heart-wrenching moment they discovered, just two days before their departure to Thailand, that flights and accommodation had not been secured. The bridesmaid broke the news amidst tears, leaving Elaine utterly stunned.
“My other friend Chevonne then said, ‘Natalie has taken all the money and we have not been able to get anything booked.’ I was just absolutely gobsmacked.”
Deception
Chevonne Millar, a close friend of Green’s for nearly a decade, divulged that the deception began in 2021, with Green offering to assist in arranging travel and accommodation for the group.
“We all had time to save up money and put towards flights and accommodation, so we just started paying in instalments, bank transfers. The first was about £800 for the flights.”
Green, masquerading as a friendly travel agent, assured them she needed funds for various accommodations in Thailand and for the wedding resort itself.
Millar admitted they initially had no suspicions as Green provided screenshots of what appeared to be bookings. However, the truth emerged just before departure when Green confessed to another friend, leaving Millar devastated. Millar had contributed approximately £1,500.
“I was extremely upset that she could have broken my trust in that way. Then I was extremely angry.”
The bride and groom, fortunately, were unaffected, having made separate arrangements. However, Elaine’s mother was shocked to learn she had unknowingly footed the bill for friends’ flights, spending around £11,000 to ensure their presence, reported BBC News.
“The fraud had badly affected what should have been the most perfect day of my life.”
Green, plagued by debt and health issues, expressed remorse through her solicitor, acknowledging the loss of friendships as a consequence of her actions.
