A 37-year-old timeshare salesman swindled a number of hotels by staying “free-of-charge,” courtesy of other people’s credit cards, Maidstone Crown Court was told.

William Sarnoe, worked for Tonbridge-based Cranbrook Promotions and obtained customers details when they paid deposits for timeshare holidays.

He then used the details to pre-book hotel stays but would actually leave before officially checking-out and settling his bill.

The court heard that Sarnoe, from Egerton Street, Liverpool, conned a total of £12,000 between July and October last year.

Nigerian-born Sarnoe pleaded guilty to three charges of obtaining services by deception relating to Holiday Inns in Rochester, Wrotham, near Sevenoaks, and Guildford, Surrey. He asked for a further 12 offences relating to hotels as far afield as Tunbridge Wells and Manchester to be taken into consideration.

It was for that reason that Judge Keith Simpson said he felt able to impose a nine-month prison sentence suspended for two years on each count.