Police are trying to find a cruel con-man who duped St Valentine’s Day romantics into paying for Loch Ness love nests that did not exist.
Couples seeking a romantic weekend away in the Highlands booked holiday lodges that promised spectacular views over the famous loch, but when they arrived at the address given online there were no cosy chalets to be seen.
The post code for the “Pier Cottages Lodges, Drumnadrochit” led them up a rough track to a private house.
At least four couples were victims of the scam, some paying more than £400 direct into the fraudster’s bank account.
Toby Turner, 27, and partner Leigh-Anne Clark, 28, paid £275 for the accommodation and hired a car for the seven-hour trip from Halifax.
They had been duped by a Facebook page and a dedicated website, www.pierlodges.co.uk, advertising the luxury lodges, complete with outdoor jacuzzi, a free bottle of wine and sporting activities.
The “owner” under the name Kevin Beaumont, even used the loch’s elusive monster in his online sales pitch which read: “Pier Cottages was opened in November 2011 and has been a great success. We are based on the banks of Loch Ness. Our bar and restaurant is an old launch station for U boats during the hunt for Nessie. We have a lot of memorabilia and artefacts around the place and you never know when Nessie is going to pop up and say Hi.”
The website and social media page gave a mobile phone number 07407 385446 which now goes straight to an answer service.
Victim Mr Turner said: “He had a Geordie accent and seemed very plausible.
“We know of at least four couples who have been victims of the fraud. There could be more as the guy said he had 16 lodges. We hope they find him and we can get our money back.
“The photographs seem to have been ripped off from a genuine Loch Ness holiday park.
“We got a free night in the Clansman Hotel on Loch Ness side after the boss heard of our plight.”
Loch Ness-based businessman Willie Cameron said yesterday: “It was a very genuine looking website and I can understand how people were taken in by him.
“However it is bad for the Highlands and bad for tourism. Hopefully the police will catch him and the courts punish him severely.”
A police spokesman confirmed they had received a complaint and are investigating.