A HUSBAND who tricked his wife into thinking he was dying of cancer conned her mum out of £2,000.

David Carroll, 35, lied to Lucy Witchard, 31, about having leukaemia when they first met in 2006 and they married five years later.

He later persuaded his mum-in-law Linda Eccles he needed £2,000 to have treatment in the US after telling her he may only have five months to live.

But this was lie and he was eventually rumbled when the family became suspicious he was just holidaying in America.

Ms Witchard, from Leicester, told the BBC that her former conman husband “stole so much of my life”.

She added that he even persuaded one of his colleagues to phone her pretending to be a doctor helping with his treatment.

Ms Witchard said: “I knew after that phone call that our marriage was over.”

Carroll was handed a suspended prison sentence for fraud after appearing at Leicester Magistrates’ Court last week.

He also lied about having prostate and stomach cancer but Ms Witchard said he later admitted making it up.

She also said he wouldn’t let her go to his chemotherapy sessions and told her he was “protecting” her.

Ms Witchard became suspicious when he was in the US rather than receiving the treatment he said he desperately needed.

She confronted him but he went “ballistic” and continued to lie about having the treatment.

His behaviour left her feeling “hurt and angry” and her mum felt “devastated and heartbroken” by his lies and “selfishness”.

Linda told the BBC: “I gave Dave £2,000 to travel to America to save his life. I had the money to help my daughter's dying husband, prevent my daughter from becoming a widow.”

Carroll, who is now living in Denbighshire, Wales, was convicted of fraud by false representation and was given a 26-week sentence suspended for two years.

He was ordered to pay £2,000 compensation and has to complete 180 hours of unpaid work.