LEANNE McCarthy is certainly gullible but it is wholly unjust that she should be paying for Wayne Gouveia’s crimes.

From the outside it seems almost inconceivable that someone would fall for the pack of lies Gouveia spun: that her life was in danger and he was a MI5 agent sent to save her.

He then fleeced almost £14,000 out of her, and she went from healthy savings to a near £2,000 debt to Abbey.

Her credit rating is shot, the debt collectors may get called in and there is even a black mark against the home where her family lives — meaning her parents are stigmatised too.

But because Gouveia had blown his illgotten gains and had nothing to show for it, the court could only order him to pay a token £10.

Gouveia will be out in a few months and can in many ways walk away from this mess. Leanne can’t.

If someone admits deliberately defrauding a victim, then surely any financial liability should be legally passed on to them.