Prolific fare dodger spared jail term over 112 unpaid train tickets

One of Britain’s most prolific train fare dodgers has been spared jail over 112 convictions for not paying for a ticket on journeys spanning nearly two years.

Charles Brohiri, 29, did not pay fares valued at more than £3,000 for Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) train journeys between February 2024 and November last year.

The defendant, originally from Hatfield in Hertfordshire, but who has been homeless for years, pleaded guilty to 76 charges of failing to pay for a rail ticket, and was convicted in his absence in August 2024 of a further 36 charges.

At his sentencing hearing at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday, district judge Nina Tempia also took into consideration a further 16 offences – with three of that number said to have been committed on Tuesday.

The judge told Brohiri: “My view is, as is set out in the pre-sentence report (PSR), that you feel that you are invincible by committing these offences and that you see it as some sort of self-entitlement that you can get away with it.”

She also called his offending “brazen and persistent”.

But she added that the PSR showed he has some insight into his crimes and that probation could help him.

The judge sentenced him to three months in jail, suspended for a year.

Brohiri was also ordered to pay back £3,629.60 in unpaid rail fares but he was not ordered to pay prosecution costs which the court heard amounted to £15,120.

He was further ordered to complete 150 hours of unpaid work, 12 months’ prohibited activity requirement – which means he must not travel on any GTR trains – and to complete rehabilitation activity requirement.

“Be under no illusion if you commit any other offences and you do not comply with the requirement on this order you will be back in court,” the judge warned him.

The court was told Brohiri continued his campaign of fare dodging after being banned last April from entering Thameslink stations as part of his bail conditions.

His offending is said to have continued unabated, with the last allegation of fare dodging recorded one day ago – on February 10 this year.

“With the exception of the period of October, November (and) December 2024, there have been offences in every month since February 2024 to the present day,” prosecutor Lyndon Harris said.

Eleanor Curzon, defending, told the court: “He has expressed remorse and regret for having continued to travel on the trains during the whole period and particularly the period when he has been appearing before you judge.”

She said the pre-sentence report found Brohiri has been facing personal troubles but “understood the severity of the charges”.

“He reiterated to me this morning that if he is given the opportunity to work with probation they can assist him in securing accommodation and employment,” Ms Curzon continued.

“It is really these two factors which will put an end to Mr Brohiri’s offending.”

She told the court that he went to university but had to drop out and has worked as a waiter and in bars.

Asked what he has been doing in his three years of being homeless in London, Ms Curzon said Brohiri has tried to get support from charities “but none of it has been consistent enough”.

The defendant will appear at the same court on March 29 for a means inquiry to assess whether he can pay further costs.

It is claimed he owes £31,742 in outstanding financial orders.

A GTR spokesperson said: “Fare evasion costs the railway an estimated £400 million a year, directly increasing the cost to the taxpayer and diverting vital public funding away from improving services for passengers.

“That is unfair both on taxpayers and on the vast majority of passengers who pay for their journeys.

“We therefore take our responsibility to protect ticket revenue very seriously.

“Through the careful use of prosecutions, targeted ticket checks, focused action at known hotspots and better reporting tools for staff, we have cut ticketless travel on our network to its lowest level since 2022.”