Scottish Tinder scammer and rapist who exploited 10 women and cheated them out of £200,000 for luxury holidays sentenced to 12 years in prison

A rapist known as the “Tinder scammer” has been in prison for 12 years after a law enforcement officer denounced the money-hungry perpetrator for targeting 10 women in so-called “love scams.”

“It’s a disgrace,” muttered self-pitying pervert Christopher Harkins as he was led handcuffed to his cell after his conviction at the High Court in Kilmarnock.

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Harkins committed 19 crimes over the course of six years and defrauded his victims of more than £214,000.

Judge Alistair Watson said: “Your conduct towards your victims demonstrates a very high level of culpability.

“You have abused the trust that each of your victims has placed in you.

“The number, nature and manner of your crimes indicate a significant degree of planning.

“The attack extended over a long period of time and targeted a considerable number of individual victims.

“It was clear from the evidence at trial that in certain cases you identified victims based on their perceived vulnerability.

Victims describe in detail the feelings of shame, humiliation, stress and exhaustion they suffered as a result of their criminal acts.

Judge Alistair Watson

“The level of damage you have caused is extremely high.

“Many of your victims lost all or part of their personal savings, leaving some in financial difficulty.

“These scams are commonly referred to as ‘love scams.'”

“The court recognizes that this is a special type of fraud that exploits a person’s sympathy and feelings. Your fictitious requests and explanations regarding your need for money were in fact calculated tricks designed to exploit the decency of these women.”

Referring to the victim impact statements presented to the court, he said: “They describe in detail the feelings of shame, humiliation, stress and exhaustion you suffered as a result of your criminal conduct.”

He was placed on the sex offenders’ register indefinitely and his victims were given indefinite restraining orders against harassment.

Katrina Parkes, Crown Prosecutor for Sex Offences in Scotland, said: “Christopher Harkins clearly poses an extreme danger to women due to his calculating, manipulative and violent behaviour.

His many victims have shown tremendous courage by speaking out and reporting him to the authorities.

Katrina ParkesScotland’s sex offences prosecutor in the Supreme Court

“His many victims have shown tremendous courage by coming forward and reporting him to the authorities.

“This conviction will hopefully provide some comfort to the women he targeted and protect others from his reprehensible schemes and depraved actions.

“This was a complex case and I thank the prosecution for their efforts in obtaining this conviction.

“We would like to encourage anyone who believes they have been a victim of similar crimes to come forward and file a report.

“We will listen to you and use all the means at our disposal to achieve justice.”