TikToker who boasted about dodging train fares caught and fined

British Transport Police and East Midlands Railway traced and prosecuted the woman

A train fare cheat who posted tips on TikTok about how to avoid paying to travel has been caught and fined.

East Midlands Railway (EMR) said the woman shared numerous videos on social media urging other passengers to defraud the train operator by following her advice.

The fare dodger recorded herself talking about travelling in Derby, Tamworth and Burton-upon-Trent.

However she was caught following an investigation and has been fined £773.

In her posts, the TikToker - who has not been named by EMR - bragged about how she never paid full price to travel and regularly did not buy a ticket at all.

Among her "tips" were hiding in the toilet when conductors approached and pretending her mobile was out of battery so she could not access her tickets.

She was prosecuted for fraud following a joint investigation by EMR and British Transport Police and now also has a criminal record.

'Indefensible'

EMR said the woman was prosecuted in November.

PC Lisa Scott-Savage, of British Transport Police, said: "We're extremely pleased with the result in this case, which highlights the price of evading fares - hefty fines and a criminal record.

"It is the legitimate fare-paying passengers who end up bearing the brunt of the cost of the dishonest people who think they can get away without paying."

Dave Meredith, customer services director at East Midlands Railway, said: "The vast majority of our customers always buy a ticket, and they understand that for the railway to successfully operate, improve, and secure investment, fares need to be paid for.

"However, there are some people who try and work the system and look for different ways to evade paying.

"Our revenue protection, fraud and security teams work both in uniform and plain clothes in order to monitor and catch fare evaders, whether they are travelling without a ticket, have a ticket for part of their journey or fraudulently travelling on a child's ticket.

"It's indefensible for certain individuals to believe they're exempt from paying for our services, and as these cases show, our teams are across our network looking for people who think it's ok to break the law."

EMR has warned passengers travelling without a valid ticket can be fined £100 on top of the price of a single ticket.