A York University student is to be deported after she stole a credit card on campus and went on a spending spree.
It was revealed during her trial at York magistrates’ court that after stealing the credit card from Derwent College, Ya Ling Chen, 28, ran up a £1,393.56 bill in another student’s name and defrauded shops including Fenwicks, Alfred Jones Spar shop in Mill Lane, Argos and Cath Kidson in Stonegate.
Due to her arrest, immigration authorities ordered her to leave the country and she is to go to Heathrow Airport tomorrow to return to Taiwan.
Originally in the country on a student’s visa, it was revealed this had expired, and she had continued to study on a visitor’s visa.
The judge, John Foster remarked that her actions were “inexplicable and very serious. It is clear your stay in this country is about to come to an end.”
Because she was to be deported soon after the trial the judge could only sentence her to one day’s imprisonment.
Chen, of Newlands Park Drive, pleaded guilty to theft and eight charges of fraud due to her use of the credit card between March 31 and April 7, as well as asking for several more offences to be considered.
Her defence lawyer Sally Howard said that a relationship breakdown had caused Chen to behave out of character, and that she had fallen behind in her studies and become depressed. “Everything got on top of her and she committed these offences,” she said. She claimed that the events had caused Chen to lose many of her friends in York.
How did she manage to use somebody elses card in so many shops?surely she would have had to know the pin?