Crieff hotel owner hopes police will soon be knocking at door of Valentine’s swindlers

A couple who enjoyed a romantic break at a luxury Perthshire hotel and then left without paying may have struck before, according to the venue owner.

Furious Jason Henderson of Crieff’s Knock Castle took to social media with an appeal to trace a pair who owe him more than £700.

He says the couple checked into the hotel on February 13 and were due to leave on the Monday morning but fled a day early.

Staff at the venue, where rooms can be up to £300 per night, tried to charge the bill to the credit card the couple had used on arrival, but it was declined.Post by Knock Castle Hotel & Spa.Mr Henderson said the pair had swindled him out of the cost of a three-night stay, champagne, flowers and two meals at the rooftop restaurant with the bill totalling £750.

“I don’t think this is the first time these rouges have done this,” he said. “They knew what they were doing.”

For more on this story, see Friday’s Courier.