Anger at lack of action on ‘Oasis ticket scammer’

A group of Oasis fans who claimed they were scammed out of cash for gig tickets have criticised an initial decision not to refer their complaints to police.

Lisa Barker, from Oldham, and 18 other people said they had paid Merseyside man Stephen Cavanagh about £6,000 between September last year and this January for tickets for the band’s forthcoming Manchester gigs.

Ms Barker said when she challenged Mr Cavanagh, he denied trying to defraud anyone, but did not return her money.

Ms Barker was originally told by Action Fraud there were “no viable lines of enquiry,” but after the BBC began to investigate the agency referred the case to Merseyside Police, which said it was now looking into it.

A BBC investigation has found that in the last year, there have been almost 10,000 reports of ticket fraud with losses totalling £10.6m.

But a leading expert said thousands of cases were not being investigated because police did not have the resources.

Ms Barker said she was “extremely disappointed”, adding: “It was only after me informing them both that I have escalated it and contacted the BBC that any action was instigated.

“There is no deterrent out there for people not to commit this offence.”

Ms Barker said she had been Facebook friends with Mr Cavanagh, who had supported her after she had weight loss surgery.

She said he told her he had tickets for the Oasis gig in Heaton Park, Manchester, on 16 July, which he did not need because he was going to a friend’s wedding.

Ms Barker, who like tens of thousands of other people had missed out on tickets when they went on sale, said she paid him £1,508 for eight.

The children’s home manager, who was planning to celebrate her 50th birthday at the gig, said: “I couldn’t wait. I was beside myself that I could get tickets, and we could all experience it together, because it’s probably the last time that they’ll ever do a tour.”

Ms Barker said Mr Cavanagh had sent her what appeared to be a Ticketmaster confirmation saying he had the tickets.

She added: “He said his only condition was that I sent him selfies from the gig, and he even sent me GIFs of the band with the catch line ‘All Your Dreams Are Made’.

“And I thought they were. “

But shortly after Christmas, Ms Barker received a message from someone warning “anyone who has bought tickets from [Mr Cavanagh]… it’s a scam”.

She said: “I thought, he can’t be. He was a lovely lad, I thought.

“We had calls and Facetimed and he was so personable.”

“I just feel so embarrassed and ashamed.”

The BBC has spoken to 15 people who said they had paid Mr Cavanagh for tickets that never came, including former Emmerdale and Happy Valley actor Jamie Dorrington.

Ms Barker said Mr Cavanagh had “made mugs of us all”.

Mr Dorrington told the BBC he had paid for two tickets for his son’s 18th birthday.

It was supposed to be a “special dad and lad night”.

“I’d missed out in the sale so when the offer came up, I was over the moon,” he said.

Mr Cavanagh sent him a voice note at Christmas, saying: “All sorted, – hope you have a good time, just make sure you send us a picture when you’re there.”

In a follow-up email, Mr Cavanagh then said: “Jamie, I’ve started getting some crazy offers for these tickets. Don’t worry, mate, they’re yours but I’ve had someone saying they were going to give me £600 for the tickets.”

Mr Dorrington said: “I even vouched for him over some Liverpool tickets he was offering, and my mate paid him for them.

“But he didn’t turn up , saying his dad had died.

“So, I put his name into Facebook and saw he’d done the same to others and it was then I realised I’d been scammed.

“I just feel terrible, and I still haven’t been able to tell my lad he’s not going.”

The BBC approached Mr Cavanagh for comment by email and text message but has had no response.

An email to Ms Barker from one of Mr Cavanagh’s accounts, sent shortly the BBC contacted him, said he had “already admitted to the police what I’ve done.

But the BBC has not been able to confirm if police have spoken to him.

The email added: “I’m not looking to get away with it. If I was a real scammer I wouldn’t of [sic] used myself and my own social media.

“There isn’t a lot more I can say but I want to pay everyone back.”

An email sent to another of his accusers said: “I have a drugs problem. I never did anything like this before and I want to get better. Once again I’m sorry. “

Reports of ticket fraud are on the rise, and 38% of all ticket fraud claims relate to concerts, according to Action Fraud, which is run by the City of London Police.

It received 600 fraud complaints relating to Taylor Swift’s UK gigs last year, and a Lloyds Bank study suggested 1,000 Oasis fans had lost more than £2m to fraudsters.

All the people who claimed to have been swindled by Mr Cavanagh said they had made complaints to Action Fraud.

Reg Walker, a ticket fraud expert, said thousands of claims like those against Mr Cavanagh were not being passed on to police for investigation.

He told the BBC: “City of London Police once had some of the country’s leading fraud investigators, but police cuts saw so many senior detectives leave.

“That’s left Action Fraud relying on pushing all these reports through algorithms and hoping that the computer says yes when in fact, more often than not, the computer says no – and it doesn’t connect the dots.

“So, cases aren’t being forward on to police.

“It happened years ago with the Beyonce concert – there was something like 209 cases sent to Action Fraud yet less than 20 were sent on for investigation.

“And that’s because they’re not looked at manually.

“How can they say there’s no viable line of enquiry when they have a name and bank account details of the suspected scammer – that’s an audit trail and a line of enquiry right there. First rule of fraud investigation: follow the money.

“Yet what’s happening is that victims are not getting justice and others are put off reporting fraud because they don’t think their case will be looked at.”

In a letter sent to each of Mr Cavanagh’s alleged victims, Action Fraud said the case was sent to the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau for review, adding: “It has not been possible to identify a line of enquiry which a law enforcement authority in the UK could pursue.”

Ms Barker said and others who had given money to Mr Cavanagh said she felt let down by Action Fraud and that the system was not fit for purpose.

She added: “I told them we know this man, so it’s not a case of identity fraud. I’m struggling to process how they don’t feel they have enough evidence to investigate. This is no deterrent, and, as victims, we don’t feel supported by Action Fraud or the police.”

The BBC put the concerns raised by Ms Barker and Mr Walker to Action Fraud, but said: “Not all reports will be passed onto the police for investigation, but there are a number of other key outcomes which put victims first and prevent fraudsters from targeting more victims.

“These include Action Fraud’s National Economic Crime Victim Care Unit (NECVCU), which helps victims to reclaim stolen money and provides further practical and emotional support.

“It also includes the developing of intelligence to assess the bigger picture of fraudulent activity happening across the UK, and disruptive action to prevent other people from falling victim, such as taking down websites, telephone numbers and email addresses linked to fraud.”

A Merseyside Police spokeswoman said: “We have received a referral from Action Fraud in relation to an alleged ticket fraud.

“Enquiries are in the process of being carried out.”