Woman faked having a young baby to dupe men into giving her cash

A mother cleared of a gruesome unsolved murder pretended she had a baby in order to dupe elderly and vulnerable men into giving her cash.

Fraudster Angela Newlands also conducted a lengthy campaign of theft – including of eight cockapoo puppies.

The 34-year-old conned numerous victims into giving her cash for her non-existent baby and used stolen bank cards to steal hundreds of pounds.

She targeted victims as old as 85 by pretending she was interested in relationships with them, and robbed a volunteer at a food bank. 

Newlands also faked injury to persuade drivers to let her into their cars – before robbing them and using their bank cards.

Fiscal depute Sam Craib yesterday told Dundee Sheriff Court of her crime spree in Angus between August 2022 and May 2024. 

The court heard her victims included a retired police officer, whose car she had climbed into at traffic lights claiming she had a blood clot after giving birth. She then stole his phone and bank cards.

At the Royal British Legion in Forfar, she stole volunteer Samantha Young-Gillian’s phone and purse, using her card to pay for a taxi and shopping worth £130.

The court heard that Newlands, of Forfar, also stole eight puppies from a kennel.

She was found carrying two of them in Forfar town centre and when questioned by police, she confessed to hurling the others over a fence. They were ‘found in an adjacent field’.

Mother-of-five Newlands, who accepted ‘full responsibility for the offences’, had sentence deferred after admitting 17 separate offences around Forfar and Kirriemuir between August 29, 2022 and May 11, 2024. 

Sheriff George Way kept her in custody while he considered the length of sentence.

Newlands was cleared of the murder of Annalise Johnstone five years ago after a judge at the High Court ruled there was insufficient evidence to convict her and the victim’s brother, Jordan Johnstone.

The body of the 22-year-old was found dumped at the Maggie Wall Witch Monument, in Dunning, Perthshire, in May 2018. Her throat had been cut.

No murder weapon has been found and the investigation remains open.