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Sunday World
11-06-2025
- Sunday World
Infamous dine-and-dash couple caught after CCTV ‘went viral'
Bernard and Ann McDonagh were jailed last year for fraud following their brazen scam An infamous Co Mayo dine-and-dash couple were caught after CCTV footage of their crime went viral, police in Wales have said. Bernard McDonagh (41), and wife Ann (39), with addresses in Sandfields, Port Talbot, hit the headlines in the UK after they admitted to a spree of 'dine and dash' thefts in south Wales where they live. The couple, who pleaded guilty to five joint charges of fraud, both hail from Ballyhaunis, Co Mayo. Now, South Wales Police Inspector Andrew Hedley has said that footage of their crime 'exploded' on social media, resulting in their arrest. "There was a huge outcry over what these people were doing," he told BBC's Strange But True Crime podcast. "There was a need to collectively bring this together under one umbrella and get a grip of it really quickly, before it escalated. "It was a brazen disregard for the law." The couple went viral after a furious restaurateur posted CCTV images of the McDonaghs and their party of eight fleeing his trendy Italian eatery after failing to pay a hefty bill. One video had 12 million views in less than a month as a campaign took hold to bring the dine-and-dashers to book. Restaurants had reported the couple turning up with a family group ordering food and drinks and leaving one or two people behind to pay the bill. The card would be declined, and they would offer to go back to their vehicle to get another card or to an ATM for cash — but then disappear. Ann and Bernard McDonagh were caught after scamming Welsh restaurants out of more than £1,000 The scams left some of the small local businesses 'devastated' as the bills left unpaid ranged up to Stg£300. Swansea Crown Court previously heard the pair, who used more than 40 aliases and 18 dates of birth between them, dishonestly obtained food and drink at four restaurants and one takeaway in the south Wales area, with the unpaid bills totalling £1,168.10. Bernard and Ann McDonagh Ann McDonagh also admitted four counts of shoplifting, including at designer store Tommy Hilfiger, taking items worth £1, In May 2024, Ann was sentenced to 12 months in prison and Bernard to eight months, after a judge told them their actions had been motivated by 'pure and utter greed'. Judge Paul Thomas told them: 'From the autumn of last year to spring of this year, you two set out on a deliberate course of sustained dishonesty. 'You would go to restaurants with your own family. You would have food and drink served to you to the value of hundreds of pounds and then you would cynically and brazenly leave without paying. Bernard and Ann McDonagh News in 90 Seconds - June 11th 'You would order the most expensive items on the menu such as steaks in the full knowledge that you had no intention whatsoever of paying for them.' The judge said that using children to wait in the restaurants, who would then run off while pretending to go to a cashpoint, was 'ruthlessly exploitative'. The McDonaghs pleaded guilty to five counts of fraud over their dine and dash escapades, totalling £1,168. Mrs McDonagh also admitted to shoplifting £1,017 in goods from Tommy Hilfiger, Sainsbury's and Tesco, and obstructing a police officer. The court heard that the couple both had previous convictions for fraud.
BBC News
13-05-2025
- BBC News
How 'dine-and-dash' Port Talbot couple were exposed by viral CCTV
Imagine ordering T-bone steaks and desserts at a family-run restaurant, racking up a bill of hundreds of pounds, before legging it without paying a married couple Bernard and Ann McDonagh got away with doing this time and time again, dine-and-dashing to the value of more than £1,000 at five different had a brazen plan which they would act out each time, even involving their was until last year, when a CCTV image of the couple shared by one of the affected restaurants on Facebook went viral, and justice caught up with them. Speaking to the BBC's Strange But True Crime podcast, South Wales Police Inspector Andrew Hedley recalled how the CCTV social media post "exploded"."There was a huge outcry over what these people were doing," said Insp Hedley."There was a need to collectively bring this together under one umbrella and get a grip of it really quickly, before it escalated."It was a brazen disregard for the law." The first target Mr and Mrs McDonagh, from Sandfields in Port Talbot, first targeted a restaurant called The River House in Swansea in August ordered the most expensive items on the menu, running up a bill of £267, before running off without got away with it that time - or so they thought - and went on to target Golden Fortune in Port Talbot, La Casona in Skewen and Isabella's in in April 2024, the couple visited the newly-opened restaurant Bella Ciao in ordered T-bone steaks and double pudding portions, racking up a bill of £329, before - once again - leaving without restaurant's owners, who at the time described the situation as "destroying", reported what happened to the police and shared a CCTV image of the couple on post gained enormous attention and social media sleuths started their own investigations, putting pressure on police who confirmed they were investigating the couple over "a number of reports of making off without payment from several businesses". Within days, the couple were arrested and in May 2024 they pleaded guilty to failing to pay restaurant McDonagh was jailed for 12 months while her husband was jailed for eight how had they managed to get away with it for so long?The duo had a carefully practised plan which was boldly repeated at every McDonagh would leave the restaurant first with other family members, while one child would be left behind with Mrs McDonagh to pay the she would try to pay the card would be declined, and so she would offer to go to a cashpoint and leave the child at the restaurant as "proof" she would the children were trained to be part of the plan, and seconds later they would run off Swansea Crown Court, Mrs McDonagh also admitted to thefts from supermarkets and obstructing or resisting a police court heard she had even lied about being pregnant to get out of Paul Thomas KC described Mrs McDonagh as a "prolific liar". 'Pure and utter greed' The question asked by many was why the couple did what they court heard Mrs McDonagh may have been "trying to make herself feel better" following family McDonagh's defence barrister said the father-of-six was "deeply embarrassed and ashamed".But Judge Thomas said they were motivated by "pure and utter greed"."Over a period of around eight months, you two set out on a deliberate course of sustained dishonesty," he told the court."You would go into restaurants with your young family, you would have food and drink served to you, on the value of hundreds of pounds, then you would cynically leave without paying."The use of their children was "ruthlessly exploitative," the judge added, describing the incidents as "carefully pre-planned to a specific pattern" and "criminality for criminality's sake".
