Bogus estate agent who swindled £160k may walk free

A bogus estate agent who fleeced tenants and landlords out of more than £160,000 and blamed her ex-boyfriend for the scam is facing jail.

Natalie Heffernan, 40, admitted carrying out the fraud for three years but claimed she was acting under the direction of her ex Chris Gosling.

But a judge found the mother-of-three was lying about Gosling’s involvement and said it was clear they both enjoyed the proceeds of the swindle and went on holiday together.

Wood Green Crown Court heard Gosling was arrested but not charged in connection with any offence.

After hearing a two-day ‘trial of issue’ the judge, Mr Recorder Richard Thomas said:

‘This fraud involved landlords being contacted in a large part by corporate tenants in the sense of companies who would then use these properties for employees.

‘Those landlords permitted this defendant to use the property.

‘The properties were not used by the companies for corporate tenants, but this defendant advertised them on SpareRoom.

‘Deposits were kept, there was a loss to landlords by way of fees and to tenants.

‘One can see that from count three on the indictment, and I use this by way of example, this is a case where Nadita Ardeshir was looking for a room to rent.

‘She responded to the advertisement and received a message from Natalie Wall.

‘She was shown the property by Natalie Wall, it is accepted that was this defendant.’

Ms Ardeshir transferred £5,600 in deposit, fees, and advance rent payments to Heffernan and never saw the money again, the judge said.

‘This defendant gave her a number of reasons as to why she could not move into the property. Ms Ardeshir was very upset.

‘The Crown’s case is that this was a relatively sophisticated fraud that was perpetrated on a large number of individuals.

‘This defendant told a litany of different lies to 38 different people who were involved in the indictment of these offences.

‘One landlord was assaulted by her and had been repeatedly beaten.

‘In so far as whether other people were involved; they were all people who were hired by this defendant on Gumtree or were her relatives.

‘The issue between the parties is whether, and to adopt the language of the sentencing guidelines, is whether this defendant was involved in the offences as stated on the indictment through coercion intimidation or exploitation.

‘I was very careful not to reach the conclusion that the defendant was not telling the truth because this was something that she had raised very recently.

‘And I was careful to examine instead the credibility of her evidence.

‘It was this defendant who has been in the estate agency business. All of the contact she accepted, of the landlords and tenants, were with her. All the other contact was with her brother or her nephew.

‘I do not accept that that is something they would have done for Chris.

‘I do accept that Chris Gosling was enjoying and perhaps disproportionately enjoying the profits of this fraud. I do accept they had a relationship that she felt that she was the one that had to support the family, I accept that once Chris saw the money coming in, he got used to it.

‘However, there was also joint enjoyment of the fruits, they enjoyed a holiday together, there were payments to her mother.

‘Whilst I am prepared to accept that Chris Gosling, who was not working, and who I accept was a leech on this defendant, may have not only encouraged her to behave this way and made it difficult for her to stop behaving this way, I cannot accept it as is it described by the defendant.

‘The account given by this defendant as to how the offending took place and the extent as to how Chris Gosling took part in all of this, I reject.

‘It is a lie.’

Heffernan, of Stepney Green, east London, admitted 30 counts of fraud by false representation and one count of assault occasioning actual bodily harm upon landlord Jon Eizaguirre in east Kensington, on June 3, 2018.

She was bailed ahead of sentence on 16 April at Wood Green Crown Court.

The judge added: ‘I am prepared to order a report with all options open. A report might be helpful for me to provide an evidential basis to deviate from the guidelines.

‘I do want to give any false hope.’