War hero’s mother tells of fraud shock

The mother of a soldier killed in Afghanistan today told how her son’s widow had “shamed” the family name by being convicted of fraud.
By Paul Berentzen
Published 23rd Jan 2014, 11:30 GMT
Anne Marlton-Thomas in front of a picture of her war hero son Loren and (below) his widow Nicola who was convicted of fraud.Anne Marlton-Thomas in front of a picture of her war hero son Loren and (below) his widow Nicola who was convicted of fraud.
Anne Marlton-Thomas in front of a picture of her war hero son Loren and (below) his widow Nicola who was convicted of fraud.

Anne Marlton-Thomas has spent the last four years coming to terms with the tragic death of her son, Cpl Loren Marlton-Thomas.

But she was stunned to discover his widow, Nicola Marlton-Thomas, has been given a three-month suspended jail sentence after admitting impersonating a dead pensioner as part of a £14,000 fraud.

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After buying the late Eunice Lees’ home in Alder Grove, Lytham, Marlton-Thomas used letters from a bank to open online accounts.

War widow Nicola Marlton-ThomasWar widow Nicola Marlton-Thomas
War widow Nicola Marlton-Thomas

Eventually, the Royal Bank of Scotland became suspicious about purchases made in the pensioner’s name and contacted police.

Now Anne Marlton-Thomas, whose home on Buckden Close, Anchorsholme, is full of photos and has tributes to her war hero son, distanced herself from her former daughter-in-law, saying she wants nothing more to do with her.

She said: “The first we knew of what she did was when we saw it in The Gazette – we were just shocked.

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“Reading about my son again brought back all these memories.

“But Marlton-Thomas is a name that not many people have, except this family, and I feel like this has shamed the name.

“There is only myself and my surviving son, Chris, that have that name.

“Loren’s brother and I have no interest in the life and actions of Nicola Marlton-Thomas. We just want people to know we haven’t benefited from this.”

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Anne Marlton-Thomas no longer has any contact with her son’s widow, except when they see each other on Armistice Day.

She added: “You never get over something like this but you do get on with life.

“We are getting through this and everything was going nicely. Then this happens.”

Cpl Marlton-Thomas, 28, was a member of the 33rd Engineers when he was killed on what would have been his last tour of duty in Afghanistan, in November 2009.

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He was regarded as one of the best “bomb hunters” in the Army.

He was given a full military funeral in Lytham and on the day of his funeral his wife was awarded the Elizabeth Cross in his memory of his bravery.

Nicola Marlton-Thomas, 34, admitted fraud by taking the identity of another person.

She was sentenced to three months in prison, suspended for a year by Blackpool magistrates.

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She was also ordered to do 150 hours unpaid work for the community.

Click here to read more on this story: ARMY WIDOW AVOIDS JAIL

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