A 33-YEAR-OLD mother-of-seven has been convicted of conspiracy to defraud Wonga of just £200.

Lyndsay Longstaff, of Faverdale Avenue, Acklam, Middlesbrough used a middle-man she knew as ‘Mogga’ to take out a £200 loan in her own name and then gave him £80 which she used for loan repayments.

In fact ‘Mogga’ was really Lee who has previously pleaded guilty to a fraud against Wonga which involved persuading people to take out a loan and then cancel their debit cards so the loan company couldn’t take back the cash.

Morris and his accomplice, Chantelle Beech, advertised on Facebook in an attempt to persuade people to join in the fraud.

The ad read: “For people who have bad credit who know they can’t get a Wonga loan, phone me if you want £200 in your bank in 10 minutes. This is not a scam. You must have £1.10 in your bank account. You don’t pay nothing back. You cancel your card.”

After the loan was processed the money would be split with Morris and Beech and the debtors were simply told to cancel their credit or debit card.

Lyndsay Longstaff, 33, who, the court heard, was struggling to buy her children clothes, met Morris at Middlesbrough Central Library.

She pleaded not guilty but was convicted by jury on Tuesday.

Earlier Conor Quinn, prosecuting, told the jury: "Don't fall into the trap of thinking of this as a popularity contest; the big bad Wonga company who should have written off the loan against a defendant with no previous convictions. Our system is not based on a popularity contest."

Kieran Rainey, defending, said using someone else to help apply for a loan on one's behalf is not a crime. There were no letters from Wonga requesting payment despite her living in the same address for five years. He said: "Wonga is one of those companies that we all know feeds on desperation. People in that position, in need of that £100 or £60, will make desperate decisions...there is no evidence of dishonesty."

The jury found Longstaff guilty and judge, Recorder Felicity Davies, acknowledged that Longstaff had not previous convictions but added: “You have now lost your good name.”

Longstaff was ordered to work 80 hours unpaid for the community good and pay a £60 victim surcharge.

Morris, 36, of Wicklow Street, Ayresome, and Beech, 46, of Saltersgill Avenue, Saltersgill, have pleaded guilty to the fraud between May 2012 and May 2013. They and several others involved in the scam will be sentenced at a later date.