NOTTINGHAM, Aug 22, 2025 – A Nottingham man who scammed Amazon out of nearly £130,000 to fuel his gambling addiction has been jailed for three years.
Danny Hutchinson, 37, of Carlton, used 117 separate Amazon accounts to place over 1,800 fake orders over a two-year period. He would either return cheaper, substandard items or keep the goods and falsely claim refunds—often reselling the products for cash.
The fraudster’s downfall came after he began posting on online forums, instructing others on how to exploit Amazon in the same way. A financial investigation, launched in 2022, linked Hutchinson to suspicious online activity that exposed the refund scheme.
Nottingham Crown Court heard that Hutchinson shifted funds through 22 different bank accounts while running the operation.
Sentencing him, Judge Michael Auty KC said, “It was a sophisticated fraud which went on for an appreciable period of time. What is unusual is that you boasted to others online about how they, too, could carry out this kind of fraud.”
The judge added: “You are plainly a man of real intellect, so I don’t understand why you thought gambling would lead to any profit. The only winners are the online casinos.”
Lucy Jones, prosecuting, confirmed that Hutchinson’s fraudulent refund scheme was uncovered after reports of online posts teaching users how to scam Amazon triggered a formal investigation.
