Wiltshire criminal went on spree at shops including TK Maxx, Debenhams

Narinder Kaur cheated scores of High Street stores into giving her refunds for goods she had never bought.

After a four-month trial at Gloucester Crown Court, believed to be the longest ever held there, Kaur was found guilty last Friday of 14 counts of fraud, two of money laundering, four of possessing the proceeds of crime, one of conspiracy to defraud, and four of perverting the course of justice.

Formerly known as Nina Tiara and now living in Chosen Hill, Cleverton, she was remanded into custody to await sentencing at a later date.

Narinder Kaur at an M&S store (Image: CPS)

The Crown Prosecution Service believe that during her four-year crimewave, the 53-year-old stole more than 1,000 from shops across the country.

At the start of the trial on November 8 last year, prosecutor Gareth Weetman told the jury: "This is a case that is all about dishonesty.

“The defendant is an intelligent but also a highly dishonest and manipulative individual.”

He said Kaur had “made a career out of deceiving retailers into handing over substantial sums to her for the return of items that she had not purchased”.

Her “extraordinary” trail of offences had continued for several years before she was caught and had been highly lucrative, he said.

The jury heard that Kaur’s theft and fraud victims included dozens of branches of Boots, Debenhams, Homebase, John Lewis, House of Fraser, Monsoon, M&S, and TK Maxx.

Narinder Kaur (Image: CPS)

Twice during the mammoth trial, Kaur collapsed in front of the jury and paramedics were called to her aid.

The prosecutor detailed how Kaur had spent £5,000 at Boots stores in Cheltenham, Malvern, Solihull, Droitwich, Kidderminster, Dudley and Smethwick - but obtained refunds she was not entitled to totalling £60,000.  

At Debenhams stores, she got refunds of £42,800 but spent only £3,600. She defrauded John Lewis stores in Watford, Chester, Milton Keynes and Cardiff out of £33,000 but spent only £5,200 in those shops.

Kaur visited many branches of Monsoon including those at Warrington, Colney, Broughton, Maidenhead, Stafford, Birmingham, Bristol, Trowbridge, Basingstoke, Reading, Bridgend, Yeovil, Telford, Watford, Cardiff, Shrewsbury and Milton Keynes and obtained £26,000 worth of refunds but her expenditure was only £5,200.

At House of Fraser stores in Bristol, Cardiff, Cwmbran and Exeter she spent £2,850 and claimed refunds of £23,000.

Narinder Kaur (Image: CPS)

Homebase and TK Maxx stores in Bristol, Stafford, Chichester, Taunton, Winchester, Salisbury, Shrewsbury, Oxford, Cannock, Solihull, Cardiff, Worcester, Farnborough, Maidenhead, and Swindon were defrauded of £19,540 by Kaur but her expenditure in those shops was just £1,181.

The prosecutor highlighted how Kaur had managed to obtain 19 refunds from 12 stores for an identical throw priced at £49.99.

Homebase stores yielded £3,623 in refunds although Kaur only spent £384 in them.

At M&S stores in Swindon, Chippenham and Bristol she obtained a refund of £3,300 with 37 credit vouchers for returned goods.

Mr Weetman said Kaur also perpetrated frauds on eight firms of solicitors and also on Wiltshire Council and her heating fuel supplier.

In October 2018 and again in September 2019 Kaur was sent notices of intended prosecution for speeding offences on the A417 in Gloucestershire but claimed that other people were driving.

In Dunelm, Swindon - when she was supposedly having a medical procedure - she raised suspicions when she tried to get a refund and was arrested. Her home was searched and police found 49 shopping bags full of goods and £108,000 in cash.

After the jury found Kaur guilty last week of all the charges against her Judge Ian Lawrie KC said it would be a “mammoth sentencing exercise”.