Man break girlfriend's leg in scam plan

Nov 22,2007 00:00 by UPI
PLYMOUTH, England -- A British man has pleaded guilty to breaking his girlfriend's leg -- with her permission -- in an attempt to cheat the local government out of $200,000.

Gordon Thomson pleaded guilty to breaking his then-girlfriend Elizabeth Hingston's leg in October 2006 as part of a plan to sue the local government by claiming she was hit by a falling wall, The Daily Mail reported Wednesday.

However, the fraud was foiled when police found a video recording on a cell phone of Thomson inflicting the injury on Hingston.

"They shot it in a house and you can see Elizabeth lie on the floor," said a friend of Thomson who has seen the footage. "Gordon, who is a big guy, then jumped on her leg with both feet.

"It was horrible-- you could hear a cracking sound. It still makes me sick thinking about it," she said.

Thomson's sentencing was postponed until next month pending a psychiatric evaluation, but Judge Frances Gilbert told the defendant to expect prison time.