Britain’s ‘biggest fare dodger’ faces jail for 112 unpaid train tickets
A prolific fare dodger has admitted racking up a bill worth tens of thousands of pounds after fare dodging for years.
Charles Brohiri avoided paying for 112 trips worth £3,266 while travelling on Govia Thameslink trains between February 2024 and November last year.
Brohiri, who is homeless, was banned from all Thameslink stations after the alleged fare evasion came to light, Westminster Magistrates’ Court heard.
He travelled for free from London Bridge to Brighton, and into Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire.
The 29-year-oldalso faces having to pay back £15,120 for more than 112 prosecutions.
He is also accused of failing to pay fines worth £48,682 from separate fare dodging prosecutions heard in the courts between August 2019 and April 2025.
District Judge Nina Tempia warned that he faces a custodial sentence due to the high number of offences.
He was blocked from the stations in April last year, but was allegedly caught without a ticket dozens of times since, despite being told to stay away from all Thameslink trains.
The latest alleged fare dodging attempt was three days ago on Tuesday while he waited for his hearing.
A judge told him in August: ‘It’s very important you take these bail conditions seriously – you don’t get on any train without having the money.’
Brohiri walked free on bail while waiting for his sentencing scheduled for February 11.
Fare dodging has flared up tensions in London after people were caught red-handed across the busiest stations while commuters say they are fed up of spending a chunk of their income on travel.
Latest London news
- Protester tears down Iranian flag outside London embassy
- Nicolas Cage film blocked by East London council over Nazi flag concerns
- London’s murder rate drops to lowest in a decade after organised crime gang blitz
To get the latest news from the capital visit Metro's London news hub.
South Western Railway, which operates services in London, Surrey, Berkshire, Hampshire, Dorset and Somerset, said it loses an estimated £45.5 million a year as a result of freeloaders.
Cost of fare dodging in London
TfL lost almost £200 million to fare dodging in 2024/25.
This has gone up from around £130 million in 2022/23.
A total of 15,930 penalty fares were issued to passengers travelling on the Elizabeth line in 2024/25.
On the Elizabeth line, 3,751 fare dodgers were taken to court in 2024/25,while 4,063 people on the Tube and 3,044 people on the Overground were prosecuted.
Fare dodging prosecutions are at its highest since 2018/19.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.