Sint-Truiden travel agent sentenced: 240 hours community service and €130,000 over 64 ghost trips
A 37-year-old travel agent from Sint-Truiden has been convicted of fraud involving ghost trips. 133 customers will be compensated; the woman also receives a ten-year ban from running a business.
Hasselt court convicts travel agent of fraud involving 133 defrauded customers
Nieuwsblad reports that the Sint-Truiden travel agent E. S. (37) was convicted on Monday by the Hasselt court of large-scale travel fraud. The woman arranged 64 so-called ghost trips and left 133 customers empty-handed. The sentence is 240 hours of community service; if she does not complete it, she risks one year in prison.
E. S. worked for years as an employee at the Sint-Truiden travel agency De Witte Merel. In 2022 she took over the running of the business herself, but financial problems quickly mounted. According to the court, her bookkeeping was chaos. "Your bookkeeping was a mess. All accounts ran into each other", was heard during the trial. Even her mother and grandmother provided financial assistance; it was not enough.
The judge established that E. S. had the option to close the books, but instead chose to deceive customers. "I acknowledge the facts. I admit that honestly. I have always worked with heart and soul. Emotionally it was difficult to admit that things were not going well", she stated during the trial. The prosecutor was less lenient: "You carried out all manner of manoeuvres to avoid losing face."
To keep customers strung along, E. S. resorted to a series of excuses: problems due to coronavirus, flight delays and other obstacles. Some customers could not depart at all; others did travel, but found on arrival that the hotel had never been booked. She forged documents and collected advance payments to cover outstanding debts. "The defendant did not shy away from pulling the wool over customers' eyes by using false documents and sending messages in the names of others", according to the court.
In November 2022, after the business had been closed for weeks, police arrested her. She was not present on Monday when the verdict was handed down.
In addition to the 240 hours of community service, the court imposes a ten-year ban from running a business. "The defendant is incompetent to run an enterprise", the prosecutor clarified. The 64 civil claimants receive a total of €130,000 in compensation. The company behind De Witte Merel must additionally pay a fine of €32,000.
Source: Nieuwsblad