Mum of six, 35, jailed for online dating scam faking cancer to con thousands from men

Leonnie Robson targeted nine men online over a 16-month period, conning them out of a total of £8,176 after spinning lies including that she had cancer and her daughter had died by suicide

A mother of six who preyed on vulnerable men through Facebook dating platforms and fleeced them out of thousands of pounds has been sentenced to prison.

Leonnie Robson, 35, fabricated elaborate stories to manipulate her victims into handing over cash, including claims that she was battling cancer and that her daughter had taken her own life. Norwich Crown Court was told she targeted nine men online during a 16-month spree, defrauding them of a combined £8,176, with one individual losing £3,000.

In one instance, Robson began demanding money merely 14 minutes after first contacting her victim. One man was tricked into draining his entire bank account. Robson has 33 previous convictions covering 87 offences, including 31 earlier fraud cases, and committed these crimes whilst on licence following a second jail term for fraud.

Simon Gladwell, prosecuting, explained that Robson deceived the men into transferring money to accounts connected to her, before blocking them when they began questioning her requests. He stated she presented a catalogue of “lies” to the men.

These included claims she was escaping domestic abuse, undergoing chemotherapy, needed funds to purchase birthday presents for her children, and that she had fallen victim to fraud herself, requiring money for food, fuel and utility bills. Robson, a mother of six whose own children have been placed in care, even told one victim that her daughter had committed suicide.

She approached the men via a Facebook dating platform before shifting conversations to WhatsApp, where she would begin requesting financial assistance. She would begin by requesting £10 or £20 before returning for additional sums. Mr Gladwell explained that after receiving loans from victims, Robson would then fabricate reasons why she couldn’t repay them before blocking their contact.

The sums handed over to Robson varied from £36 up to £3,000. Not a penny was ever returned. Her downfall came when a carer for one victim raised concerns about the man transferring money to someone he’d encountered online. Robson, previously of Victoria Road, Great Yarmouth, but now residing on Dickens Road in the town, appeared at court on March 13, 2026, for sentencing.

The defendant admitted five frauds and requested two additional similar offences from last summer be taken into consideration.

Judge Alice Robinson stated Robson had been “spinning them lies about your personal life in order to gain their sympathy and trust to persuade them to part with money”.

She declared her certainty that the offending had severely impacted the victims, with one pursued “mercilessly for everything he had” until he handed over his final £1.07 which represented “all he had in his account”.

Handing down a two year, nine week prison term, the judge declared “it’s quite clear this is extremely serious offending” with the crimes requiring “significant planning”.