A Scots conman who swindled partners and friends out of thousands of pounds to feed his online gambling habit and splash out on designer clothes has been warned he faces a jail sentence. Michael Higgins conned 12 pals into handing over large sums of cash after claiming he could set up rounds of golf at the prestigious St Andrews Old Course for a reduced fee.

Higgins, 42, also cheated women he met on dating sites into handing over money after saying he could supply one with cheap Apple products and telling a second his sister needed help with vet bills. The lying crook then managed to convince a pensioner who worked for loan company into sending him £6000 of her own funds after he told her he had to go into a private hospital for an operation.

Edinburgh Sheriff Court was told the employee was so shocked when police informed her of Higgins’ deceit that she was “physically sick on two occasions” while she gave her statement. Prosecutor Ruaridh Allison spoke for 40 minutes as he detailed 11 elaborate fraud offences committed between 2020 and 2022 that Higgins pleaded guilty to at the capital court on Monday afternoon.

Mr Allison said Higgins befriended victims after meeting them at the Deer Park and Newbattle golf clubs claiming he could organise for them to play at the world famous Old Course at St Andrews in Fife for a fee of £145. The men transferred hundreds of pounds into Higgins’ bank account but the promised rounds of golf never materialised despite him being confronted on several occasions.

Higgins, from Livingston, West Lothian, also took several payments totalling £1475 from one pal who had been conned into believing he was paying for a three day golf holiday to Spain. The court heard Higgins met ex-partners Fleur Brand and Katie Black on online dating sites Bumble and Tinder and soon began fleecing them for cash.

Ms Brand was told Higgins could obtain cheap Apple products through his work with a finance company and despite handing over £350 for an iPad Pro she failed to receive the item. Ms Black was conned out of a total of £6160 after meeting the lying Romeo on Tinder in 2021.

Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community!

Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today.

You’ll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland.

No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team.

All you have to do is click here if you’re on mobile, select ‘Join Community’ and you’re in!

If you’re on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click ‘Join Community’.

We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like.

To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose ‘exit group’.

If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.

His scams included telling her his “online banking was not working” and that he later needed funds to help his sister with large vet bills for her cat. The fiscal depute said Ms Black had eventually “used up all her savings” by handing over cash to Higgins and one lie saw him break down in tears claiming he needed money as his mother had “no money for food”.

Mr Allison said a third woman met Higgins through her employment with a loan company but he had contacted her personally pleading for help pay for travel to London as he was going into hospital for treatment for a leg injury. The pensioner believed the web of lies and transferred a total of £6490 of her own cash into Higgins account after he had told her he “required money to eat” and “needed money for clothes”.

The court was told the elderly victim had made 127 cash transactions to Higgins over a two year period and when police informed her of the fraud she had thrown up on two occasions due to the shock. The fiscal said a police investigation into Higgins began following a complaint to them by Ms Brand and more victims came forward after she had named and shamed him online in 2022.

Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community!

Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today.

You’ll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland.

No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team.

All you have to do is click here if you’re on mobile, select ‘Join Community’ and you’re in!

If you’re on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click ‘Join Community’.

We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like.

To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose ‘exit group’.

If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.

Mr Allison added: “The banking records of the accused were seized and what can be seen in those banking records is the money being deposited to the accused has been used for payments on gambling websites. There are occasions when the funds have been used for purchases of designer clothing but by far and away the vast majority of the sums transferred were spent on gambling.”

The court heard Higgins fraudulently obtained a total of £18, 225 from 15 complainers between February 1, 2020 and May 28, 2022. Higgins had not guilty pleas to a further 12 fraud allegations and one charge of failing to appear at court accepted by the Crown.

Sheriff Matthew Auchincloss said: “This is a catalogue of charges that means you are in a very serious position. I have to tell you the most likely outcome for a catalogue of charges like this is a custodial sentence.”

Higgins was granted bail and sentence was deferred to next month.

Don’t miss the latest news from around Scotland and beyond. Sign up to our daily newsletter .