Raymond McDonald: The downfall of a dating fraudster

For the victims, the aftermath of their relationships with McDonald has been devastating.

Several spoke of feeling suicidal, of being unable to trust anyone again, and of feeling deeply ashamed they had been taken in.

“I have to admit to being self-deprecating,” Paula says. “I thought about ending it all, but I have three cats and I couldn’t bear to leave them.”

Although McDonald pleaded guilty to 17 counts of fraud and other offences, he never expressed any remorse to his victims.

“A lot of them are quite angry,” Det Con Sheban says. “They’ve seen him playing the system and not taking any responsibility for what he’s done.”

But some have found solace in speaking out against him.

“I feel like I would like to tell other people to just be careful,” says one woman. “If you meet someone and they’ve got loads of lies, even if they seem like a nice person, just don’t get too involved too quickly.”