Laura McPherson even told her friends and family, including her daughter who was then 12 and is now 16, about the so-called diagnosis.
A woman in the UK tricked her partner into giving her Rs 28 lakh (about 25,000 pounds) by faking multiple types of cancer. Instead of using the money for treatment, she spent it on breast enhancement surgery and weight-loss treatments.
Laura McPherson, 35, told her partner, Jon Leonard, and even her 12-year-old daughter that she had cervical, ovarian, colon, bowel, and breast cancer. The Derby Crown Court heard that she made everyone believe she was dying.
McPherson met Leonard in 2011. He ran a company that raised millions for charity. In 2017, she lied to him about having terminal cancer and started taking money from him for fake treatments.
She went as far as staging photos to look like she was undergoing chemotherapy. She even told her family and friends about her false diagnosis.
The Truth Comes Out
Her lies were exposed in December 2021 when Leonard dropped her off at the Royal Derby Hospital for cervical cancer treatment. Later, he found out she never went inside. Instead, she took a taxi to another city.
Suspicious, Leonard called the private clinic where McPherson claimed she had a mastectomy. The clinic told him she actually had breast enlargement surgery.
Leonard later shared how deeply the betrayal affected him. “The emotional pain is hard to put into words. I don’t think I’ll ever trust people the same way again,” he said.
Judge Jonathan Straw, who handled the case, called McPherson a “wicked and devious liar.”
“You made the people who cared about you believe you were suffering from terminal cancer,” the judge said. “It’s hard to imagine how someone could be so cruel.”
The Punishment
McPherson pleaded guilty in an earlier hearing. The judge gave her a community order, a curfew, and 30 days with a probation officer. She also has to wear an electronic tag and stay inside from 7 PM to 6 AM on certain days. If she fails to follow these rules, she could go to jail.
