Cruise conman Richard Lester received a five-year prison sentence on Tuesday for scamming 184 hopeful cruisers out of £406,856.39 (approximately $507,000) over a three-year period.
Lester’s scheme involved convincing his victims to buy cruise miles through his website in exchange for cruises and discounted cruise fares. However, instead of honoring bookings, the UK-based perpetrator ran a Ponzi scheme—using money from new customers to fund trips for earlier ones. Victims also reported that the required miles for booking cruises would suddenly increase, making it harder to claim their trips.
Lester actively recruited passengers to expand his network while onboard cruises, even enlisting some as agents for his fraudulent business. His victims spanned several countries, including Japan, Germany, France, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, the U.S., and the UK.
The 56-year-old managed these transactions through his company, Cruise Direct UK Ltd, which operated from 2009 to 2014. Clients were initially able to sail on the vacations they had paid for, and Cruise Direct even won a World Travel Award in 2012. But by 2011, trouble was brewing.
By that year, Lester had stopped booking cruises for many of his clients. Several reported receiving fraudulent booking confirmations, only to be turned away at the port by cruise lines.
Living Large at Others’ Expense
According to Police Constable Leanne Smith who was heavily involved in the ten-year case, Lester was a gambler who used the cash to fund his extravagant lifestyle.
“Lester poured funds into a lavish lifestyle he bragged about to the same victims’ he defrauded,” Smith said. “Money was frittered away on online poker websites and his other business interests.”
As complaints piled up, the UK National Fraud Intelligence Bureau compiled evidence and, in 2013, handed it over to Essex Police, prompting a decade-long investigation.
Conviction and Sentencing
On December 17, 2024, Lester was convicted of fraudulent trading and concealing criminal property. Nearly two months later, on February 11, 2025, Judge Alexander Mills sentenced him to five years in prison. Additionally, Lester was banned from serving as a company director for the next nine years.
Travel scams are increasingly common, with new victims coming forward each year. Just last December, a group of women from Florida reported being deceived by fake reservation numbers and booking confirmations.
The problem has become so widespread that agencies like the Federal Bureau of Investigation now caution travelers to be wary of deals that seem too good to be true.
