A fraudster who made more than £9,000 selling football tickets he didn’t have on social media has been jailed for two years and 11 months.

Hussayn Hirani, of Eagle Drive, Colindale, pleaded guilty to 28 counts of fraud by false representation at Harrow Crown Court yesterday.

Hirani would take images of real football tickets posted by people on social media, and advertise them for sale online.

In a bid to distance himself from the fraud, victims would be asked to make payment into bank accounts belonging to Hirani’s friends, who went on to withdraw the cash and hand it to him.

But no tickets were ever sent to the buyers. Hirani was originally charged with three counts of fraud by false representation, but as the result of an investigation carried out by the Met’s fraud squad, 26 more charges were made against the 24-year-old.

Detectives discovered Hirani also sold fake Wimbledon and concert tickets. In total he conned victims out of more than £9,000 over the course of his offending.

Hirani was handed 25 months’ in prison for a spate of crimes carried out between August 2016 and October 2017. However, he had also previously been arrested and convicted for fraud in June 2016 and again in June 2017 and was handed a suspended sentence on both occasions.

After Judge Rosa Dean learned of Hirani’s previous offending she added another 10 months to his jail sentence.

Det Con Paul Allgood said: “This was a lengthy and complex investigation, involving dozens of victims. Hirani betrayed the trust of all of these people and made a living out of lying.

“He arranged for the profit he made from these crimes to go into the bank accounts of his friends and associates to distance himself from the offending.

“I would strongly discourage members of the public from allowing anyone to access or use their bank accounts. You should never disclose personal bank details unless for a legitimate purpose, to an authorised individual or organisation.

“I would also encourage the public to take extra care when purchasing goods through social media,” he added.

Crime prevention advice can be found online at met.police.uk/advice-and-information/fraud/personal-fraud or contact cyber crime organisation Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040.