A model who conned men by telling them she was set to inherit a £16million fortune has pleaded guilty to more than a dozen counts of theft and fraud.
Romance fraudster, Gemma Kingsley, 50, wove ‘a web of lies’ by duping several victims into relationships and telling them she was due to inherit millions.
The conwoman would then leverage the prospect of her supposed financial windfall to convince her victims to spend huge sums of money – one victim on a wedding that never happened.
In 2019, a report that Kingsley had fraudulently used the bank details of her mother’s friend to stay at Cromhall Farm in Chippenham sparked a police probe with several investigations into the fraudster being passed on to Wiltshire Police.
Kingsley had been in a relationship with one victim between January 2016 and January 2018, telling him she was set to receive a ‘total inheritance fund’ of £42million and claimed a solicitor said she would get £16million, detectives found.
She furthered her lies by using forged letters from professionals leading to the victim splashing out thousands of pounds on a wedding, furniture for a new home, dental bills and her debts in the belief he would be reimbursed, court documents show.
The model also stole his money and opened a betting account in his name where she placed a large amount of money, which she lost gambling by using his bank cards. The victim lost ‘in excess of £100,000’, documents show.
After the relationship broke down, Kingsley began a relationship with another victim and also mislead him with the same lies, resulting in him helping her front deposits for a Land Rover, a Porsche as well as lavish hotel stays that they had no means to pay.
Gemma Kingsley, 50, (pictured) has pleaded guilty to a dozen counts of theft and fraud after duping her victims out of thousands of pounds
The model wove a ‘web of lies’ and told her victims she was set to inherit millions leading to them spending money on a wedding that never happened, deposits for cars and more
Kingsley had been in a relationship with one victim between January 2016 and January 2018, telling him she was set to receive a ‘total inheritance fund’ of £42million
And similarly to the other victim, the man also racked up a large debt due to her use of his bank cards.
The romance fraudster repeatedly used personal and company bank cards of two other individuals she was in brief relationships with during the autumn of 2019, without their knowledge.
A Wiltshire Police probe also found that Kingsley had committed theft and fraud against numerous other victims, including solicitor’s firms, lawyers and a bank, by falsifying documents and letters.
Kingsley was later charged with various offences and served summons on June 18, 2025, but failed to attend to court.
Eleven days later she was arrested on the Isle of Skye after being spotted speeding by Police Scotland.
Kingsley of Northumberland pleaded guilty to six counts of theft, four counts of fraud by false representation, two counts of using a false instrument with intent that it will be accepted as genuine, and one count of being in possession of an article for use in fraud at Swindon Crown Court on Wednesday.
She was remanded into custody to be sentenced on March 25.
Detective Constable Melissa Pope, from Wiltshire Police’s fraud team, said: ‘Kingsley wove a web of lies with her victims, causing significant emotional anxiety and long-term mental and financial harm.
‘She manipulated their emotions, assuring them that through her future inheritance she would be able to repay the considerable sums of money that they were spending on her behalf.
‘For one of the victims, an expensive wedding which had been planned, for which the victim’s relatives had booked to come from Australia, was cancelled at short notice.
‘Following the launch of our investigation, Kingsley delayed the court process, denying what she had done until the final moment before a trial would be arranged.
‘She lied continuously through the investigation, giving false statements and communicating various health issues as to why she shouldn’t face charges.
‘I’m pleased she has finally admitted the romance fraud charges against her, as well as a number of other fraud and theft offences relating to other victims. I hope that her victims can now start to move on from this traumatic experience.
‘It is a huge breach of trust and self-esteem which can take years to recover from.’