TWO Southampton students ripped off thousands of pounds from unsuspecting music fans on a bogus website offering tickets to outdoor festivals.

Dale Frost and David Martins raked in £11,000 from the scam taking inspiration from consumer programme Watchdog, a court heard.

About 80 customers used the site, in some cases spending up to £500 on tickets for events last summer, which included the V Festival, Download Festival, Reading Festival and Isle of Wight’s Bestival. Acts topping the bill included megastars Lady Gaga and Kings of Leon.

The former Solent University students were found out after numerous complaints to Southampton City Council trading standards.

Southampton Magistrates’ Court heard how Frost, 21, of Radcliffe Road, who was studying web design, and Martins, 21, of Milton Road, set up and ran the Internet site called Z Tickets between March and June last year.

This was at one stage incorporated into a limited company called FM Entertainment Ltd, the court heard.

Gary Lucie, prosecuting, said it was only in tiny print that it explained the “tickets”

were novelty souvenirs only (circled in red above).

He said the tickets would arrive only days before the event and when customers complained they were told to check the terms and conditions.

He said buyers had paid out nearly £18,000, but the defendants had only received £11,000 as complaints started coming in and some of the transactions were stopped.

Most were reimbursed by their credit card companies but about £2,000 was not refunded.

A subsequent raid at their address by trading standards revealed a range of tickets.

In interview, Mr Lucie said the defendants claimed the idea had come from watching small scams on a BBC programme hosted by Anne Robinson.

“They thought if they put on the website somewhere they were novelty tickets they would be all right,” said Mr Lucie.

Frost and Martins pleaded guilty to one count of using their company for fraudulent purposes, namely the advertising and selling of tickets to music festivals giving the impression they were genuine tickets when they were novelty tickets, contrary to the Fraud Act and the same charge contrary to the Companies Act.

Noel Roberts, mitigating, said it was both defendants’ first offence and they had pleaded guilty at the first opportunity.

He said the students had been thrown off their courses, which was a degree of punishment.

The court was told Martins had since been studying accountancy at Bournemouth University while Frost had given up his studies and was working in sales.

Mr Roberts said: “A future in finance for Mr Martins is now probably out of the question.

“It was greed, that was why they did it, they saw an opportunity and they exploited it.”

Mr Roberts said the money had been spent on rent, putting down a deposit on a property and a £500 holiday each.

The pair were committed for sentence at Southampton Crown Court next month.

A Southampton Solent University spokeswoman said the pair were thrown off their courses as soon as the allegations came to light.

She said: “The university took immediate disciplinary action as soon as we were made aware of the situation, and can confirm that the two individuals are no longer students here.”