A north-east man who was defrauded out of £50,000 by his ex-partner is now debt free – thanks to the Press and Journal.
Allan Bartlet had no idea Pamela Milne was taking out loan after loan online, claiming to be him.
But a year later, when he was bombarded with final notice letters and payment demands, he discovered the woman he had trusted for years had betrayed him.
In November, Miss Milne was jailed for 14 months after she admitted pretending to be Mr Bartlet to fraudulently obtain £49,941.
But the painter and decorator from Ellon was left with a string of debt and a black listed credit rating as a result of her crimes.
Despite continually informing the banks he had been a victim of fraud he was still left with unpaid loans and there seemed no way of fixing his bad credit history.
But today, Mr Bartlet is free from the debt after the Press and Journal highlighted his plight. He now said he feels like a weight has been lifted off his shoulder.
Last night he said: “The Press and Journal has helped so much, there is no doubt in my mind that without getting the media involved my outstanding debts would still be there.
“It was only once the article ran in the paper that the banks actually paid attention and I started getting my money back.
“Since getting the paper involved the loans have been paid off and I even got a letter admitting that the issue should have been dealt with sooner.
“It’s been such a huge relief and a weight off my shoulders and now I’m just ready to move on and forget it ever happened.
“The whole thing has been very stressful and I’m now ready to put it all behind me.”
Since Miss Milne’s conviction, Mr Barlet has criticised the authorities for not providing any information to help him sort out his finances.
Lloyds and TSB had refused to clear the debts his former partner owed, despite it being her debt in his name.
A spokeswoman for Lloyds Banking Group said: “We’re sorry to hear that Mr Bartlett was a victim of fraud.
“Back in 2011, Mr Bartlet’s credit rating was cleared of the debt, but his recent mortgage application suggested that it was still affected.
“We have apologised for any error here and have contacted the agencies once again to correct the data. Experian has confirmed that this is resolved.”