Barrister Peter Barnett 'may have cost Chiltern Railways £23k in unpaid fares'

Peter Barnett admits fraud, but says he did not con Chiltern Railways out of £23,000

A barrister who avoided paying train tickets could have cost a rail company £23,000 a court has heard.

It is claimed Peter Barnett, 43, boarded trains at Haddenham and Thame Parkway without a ticket and used an Oyster card to "tap out" at Marylebone.

Chiltern Railways claims it lost £23,000. Barnett, who admits fraud, said it was £10,000 once leave was taken into consideration.

The case at Westminster Magistrates' Court was adjourned until 27 July.

Suspect 'ran off'

Chiltern Railways has been urged to calculate the exact loss to the company before the case can proceed.

The court was told Barnett, from Oxford, was stopped by a ticket inspector at Marylebone station and asked where he travelled from.

When he claimed to have travelled from Wembley, instead of Haddenham and Thame Parkway in Oxford, the inspector became suspicious and Barnett ran off.

He handed himself in later that day.

Barnett admits six counts of fraud by false representation between April 2012 and November last year.

He has been released on unconditional bail.