A 45-year-old woman who used internet auction site eBay to con holidaymakers out of almost thousands of pounds has been sent to prison.

Julie Flood, of Sussex Road, Maidstone, sold 27 people luxury holidays that never materialised.

Recorder Simon Blackford sentenced her to 16 months in prison at Maidstone Crown Court for the £38,000 theft.

Earlier this year, Flood, who has previous convictions for dishonesty, including one selling handbags on eBay with a false trademark, admitted 27 charges of theft between November 2004 and March 2005.

Philip St John-Stevens, prosecuting, told the sentencing hearing Flood had advertised holidays, including a trip to New York with helicopter flights and a Broadway show, claiming it had been for her, but she was unable to go.

He said Flood, using the usernames Jool5353 and Zena1110, had asked the holiday buyers to pay cash into her personal account rather than through the safer PayPal system, which would have offered protection.

Families were left without their holidays and he described how one victim would never forget the look on his children’s faces when he told them their dream trip to Disney World was off. Defence barrister Edmund Fowler said Flood had not intended to scam people, but found herself in difficulty when her eBay site was suspended because of the fake handbags conviction.

However, Recorder Blackford concluded even if it had not started as a scam it became “a swindle on a substantial scale”.

A confiscation order is now being organised, and money obtained will be used to pay back the victims.

After the case, Det Con Nick Hatcher said: “It was the kind of sentence we were expecting and it was indicative of the kind of crime she has committed. We hope the victims are happy with this result.”