A woman who catfished her best friend for nearly 15 years by posing as a boyfriend and creating an entire fake family has been jailed for three years in what a judge described as a “wicked” betrayal.
Claire Gilbert, 45, created an elaborate web of lies that left her victim believing she was in a relationship with a man named ‘Carl Murphy’ and had become mother to his daughter ‘Katie’ – neither of whom existed.
Manchester Crown Court heard how Gilbert’s deception, described as “almost like the plot of a Netflix drama”, saw her use different SIM cards, voice-changing apps and fake social media profiles to manipulate her trusting friend over a decade and a half.
The victim, who cannot be named, discovered she had “lived a lie” when she finally uncovered the twisted scheme that had cost her thousands of pounds and destroyed her chance of having a real family.
Years of Elaborate Deception
The court heard Gilbert joined the victim’s cleaning business in 2005, quickly becoming her best friend. The manipulation began when Gilbert claimed she was being abused by a partner named ‘Johnny’ – a relationship that never existed.
Believing she was saving her friend from domestic violence, the victim invited Gilbert to move in with her after seeing what appeared to be evidence of injuries.
Shortly after, the victim was contacted by ‘Carl Murphy’, supposedly Gilbert’s friend who was in prison. A relationship developed through text messages, with the victim sending sexual texts and intimate pictures to the fictional man.
Prosecutor Tara Riley told the court: “It wasn’t until 2019 that she discovered Carl Murphy was the defendant purporting to be him.”
Fake Family Created to Control Victim
Gilbert’s deception escalated when she invented an entire family for ‘Carl’, including a daughter named ‘Katie Jones’ supposedly born in 2007, his mother, and sisters ‘Hayley Murphy’ and others.
The victim came to see ‘Katie’ as her own daughter, with the fictional child eventually calling her “mother”. Gilbert cruelly fabricated stories about ‘Katie’ being taken into care, preventing any visits due to supposed social services involvement.
“These people were the defendant, who used different SIM cards,” Ms Riley explained to the court.
Fabricated Tragedies and Financial Fraud
Gilbert manipulated her victim with increasingly distressing lies, including claims that:
- ‘Carl’ had attempted suicide
- His mother had died
- ‘Katie’ had been diagnosed with meningitis and required finger amputations
- She herself had been “kidnapped, beaten and raped”
- She was dying
The victim paid £500 for ‘Katie’ to go on a school trip to Disneyland Paris and covered phone contracts for both ‘Carl’ and ‘Katie’. She also sent money, gifts and letters to the fictional family members over the years.
Gilbert went further, taking out multiple credit cards in the victim’s name. A Littlewoods card was £3,680 in arrears, while other fraudulent accounts included JD Sports and Freeman’s credit accounts totalling thousands more.
Unravelling of the Lies
The deception began to crumble in 2017 when the victim discovered Gilbert had been messaging her through ‘Carl’s’ Facebook account. She also found Christmas gifts and cards meant for ‘Katie’ that had been stashed away over the years.
When confronted, Gilbert brazenly told her to speak to ‘Carl’ as it “wasn’t her place” to explain.
The victim’s mental health deteriorated, forcing her to move in with her sister. When bailiffs arrived over unpaid utility bills – money she had entrusted to Gilbert – she finally conducted a credit check that revealed the extent of the financial fraud.
Police Discovery of Catfishing Tools
When police raided Gilbert’s home, they discovered damning evidence including:
- Multiple phones and SIM cards in a bag
- A voice-changing app on her phone
- A ‘prank call’ app and a ‘crying’ app
- Letters from the victim to ‘Katie’
- A warning letter from Greater Manchester Police about her behaviour
Devastating Impact on Victim
In a heartbreaking victim impact statement, the woman told the court: “I discovered the last 15 years of my life were a fabrication and I was living a lie. Claire was my best friend. She told me she had been abused, raped and beaten. All of this was a lie and I believed her.”
“For 15 years I was catfished, lied to and psychologically tortured. It wasn’t just a lie, it was the abuse of my future, my finances and my life.”
The victim, now 45, revealed the most devastating consequence: “I am now 45 and I can never have children of my own, something which I always wanted. Claire took away my chance to be a mum.”
She added: “I used to be confident and strong-minded. I had a good job and ran the cleaning business we had together. Now I get overwhelmed easily and have nightmares.”
Judge’s Damning Verdict
Judge Bernadette Baxter condemned Gilbert’s actions as “wicked”, noting that the victim’s sister had described her as a “complete shell” trying to rebuild her life.
“There was a high degree of planning and it took place over a long period of time. This behaviour was intended to maximise distress,” the judge said.
She added: “In nothing I have read have you shown one jot of remorse or insight into what you have done.”
Gilbert, who covered her face with a black cap throughout the hearing, pleaded guilty to stalking and four counts of fraud. She was sentenced to three years in prison.
Defence barrister Shirlie Duckworth said Gilbert had been diagnosed with a complex mental disorder, though conceded this was not the cause of the offences. She described Gilbert’s existence as “pathetic”, adding: “She is isolated, she is lonely. I am at a loss to explain why she behaved as she did.”
The case highlights the devastating impact of catfishing and the sophisticated methods used by perpetrators to maintain their deceptions over extended periods.
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