Louise Chantry, 42, checked herself into Judge’s Lodgings in York under false name Lucinda Crawford on January 5 last year
A royal ‘superfan’ who triggered a security alert after she sneaked into Prince George’s school scammed hotels and ran up thousands of pounds of unpaid bills.
Louise Chantry, 42, checked herself into Judge’s Lodgings in York under the false name Lucinda Crawford on January 5 last year.
She told front desk staff she was working for a model agency and they would be paying for her stay, a court heard.
But the staff grew suspicious of Chantry after she repeatedly came back to the front desk to add dates to her stay.
The scammer ran up a bill of £1,423, before she sneaked out of the five-star inn without paying, Westminster Magistrates’ Court heard.
She then checked herself into the Principal York on January 13 and made a booking under another alias, again claiming her employer would pay the bill, the court heard.
The Chelsea-based fraudster is said to have told the check-in staff she was going to stay another night, before they received a warning from the Judge’s Lodgings.
Prosecuting, Simon Maughan said: ‘On the 5th of January Ms Chantry presented herself in front of the Judge’s Lodgings in York.
Chantry previously gained access to Thomas’s, Battersea (pictured) on September 12, 2017, just six days after Prince George started at the £20,000 a year prep school
‘She said her name was Lucinda Crawford and that she was working for a model agency.
‘She kept adding dates to the venue and when staff became suspicious of the defendant, she said the company she worked for was paying the bill..
‘The defendant was last seen leaving the Judge’s Lodgings and left a bill totalling £1,423.40.
Mr Maughan told Chief Magistrate Jessica Balwin that Chantry then went to Principal York under a new pseudonym intending to carry out the same deceit.
But her plans were scuppered when the Judge’s hotel staff found her true identity online and sent an urgent email to the Principal York.
Louise Chantry, 42, checked herself into Judge’s Lodgings in York (left) under the false name Lucinda Crawford on January 5 last year. She then checked herself into the Principal York (right) on January 13 and made a booking under another alias, again claiming her employer would pay the bill, the court heard
He said: ‘They received an email from the Judge’s saying she had left their hotel without paying, and she may do the same.’
Chantry vanished before she could be confronted, leaving a £334.95 bill behind, he said.
‘There is clearly a degree of planning, and sophistication to a degree, hopping from one hotel to the next, Mr Maughan said.
‘This is not about getting a few drinks from the mini bar, it’s getting thousands of pounds worth of free stay. An aggravating factor is that this is not a lady of good character.’
Chantry previously gained access to Thomas’s, Battersea on September 12, 2017, just six days after Prince George started at the £20,000 a year prep school.
The sports therapist later accepted a police caution for causing a nuisance on school property.
Chantry previously gained access to Thomas’s, Battersea (pictured) on September 12, 2017, just six days after Prince George started at the £20,000 a year prep school
She also failed to attend York Magistrates’ Court in February and was then caught shoplifting chocolate.
Defending, Christiane Adelmann argued the court should take into account Chantry’s personal circumstances and indicated she acted out of desperation.
Ms Adelmann said: ‘Her marriage ended, her father died, her business came to an end, and she’d fallen out with her mother.’
Ms Adelmann told chief magistrate Baldwin that Chantry was resourceful and her life had since taken a positive turn.
She continued: ‘Ms Chantry has pleaded guilty at the first opportunity, she accepts in full what she did and she is extremely remorseful and embarrassed.
‘What she has done is serious and she has done it before. There is no excuse, but it is a reflection of what was going on at the time.
‘Two months ago she completed a course in fashion, she’s in a healthy relationship, she has attempted to pay back the people for her actions.’
Ms Adelmann said Chantry had paid the shop back and then written a cheque to The Principal and The Judges to pay back the hotel bills.
Chantry was convicted of three counts of theft, two counts of fraud, and one count of failing to surrender. She was ordered to pay a £400 fine in seven days’ time.