Another online bingo addict has been jailed for stealing significant amounts of money to use on bingo sites. The saleswoman took more than £30,000 from her clients spending the money on gambling a court has heard.

Lynn Barnes, 58, a married mum from Blackpool has been given a 15 month jail sentence after pleading guilty of two accounts of theft. She had taken the two customers money who thought they were making their final payments on properties they were purchasing in Bulgaria.

She had received a payment of £23,720,47 from one customers and £7122.24 from another customers. Barnes had spent the amounts within a few days of the money being received in her accounts on things like bingo at Tombola and payments to loan companies. Preston Crown Court were told that some of the funds were used to play at online gambling sites and Tombola’s brand was mentioned in a report. Given the restriction at Tombola it is believed she had accounts with a number of brands.

In June 2008, Barnes had sent an email to the first client claiming that as the agency she worked for was having problems with the developers the client should send the payment directly to her.

Prosecuting, Richard Archer said: “Mrs Barnes had told her it would help to pay directly to her because it would quicken the process.”

The client contacted the police when she received no confirmation of the transaction being completed.

The court was told that the defendant’s husband, Tony, who ran the agency with his wife had had no knowledge of the missing funds.

In the second case, a man had been a previous customer of the agency and was looking to buy a further property had been told a final payment of £7,122.24 was needed to for furnishings and maintenance.

Again parts of these funds were used to fulfil Barnes gambling addiction to online bingo.

Chris Hudson who was defending claimed Barnes was not a “habitually dishonest” woman.