£900 football ticket conman's nine years on the run

England drew with Sweden at the 2006 World Cup in Germany which the conned fans missed out on

A conman who went on the run for nine years after staging a £900 scam selling England tickets for the 2006 football World Cup, has handed himself in.

Gary Nixon, 44, fled to Scotland after advertising tickets online for the Sweden v England match in Germany and said he could arrange accommodation.

But two victims from Ogmore Vale, Bridgend county, received nothing.

Nixon, of Dundee, admitted obtaining property by deception at Bridgend magistrates.

Nia James, prosecuting, said: "He left his home address in the south Wales area after realising he was in trouble and couldn't refund the money."

The court heard Nixon was forced to "beg and borrow" under false names when he lived in Fintry, Dundee.

Magistrates were also told he "had lost everyone and everything over this passage of time" all because of his World Cup con but was now in full-time employment in England and was keen to pay his victims back.

A third victim could not be traced.

Magistrates ordered him to pay his victims back the sums of £590 and £220 and he must do 80 hours unpaid work.