A wedding planner scammed £130,000 from dozens of couples, leaving some double-booked and others in limbo weeks before their big day.

Gambling addict Craig Williamson, 42, went on the run to Ibiza after spending up to £5000 a day on his habit with cash taken from couples due to wed at Guthrie Castle.

The multi-millionaire owner of the Angus venue, Dan Pena, has spent tens of thousands of pounds covering refunds and bookings.

Dundee Sheriff Court heard one bride found her wedding - for which she had handed over nearly £19,000 to Williamson - was not on the books a week before her big day.

It went ahead after Mr Pena met the cost from his own pocket.

Another's wedding was triple-booked for a date in mid-July - forcing her to reschedule for later in the year, again with Mr Pena meeting the cost.

A third bride handed over just short of £19,000 to Williamson for a wedding scheduled for June and booked more than 18 months in advance.

There was no record of it, however, and Mr Pena paid for the ceremony.

Prosecutors have been unable to identify every affected bride because of missing paperwork and Mr Pena decided not to book any weddings at the venue from December.

The court heard Williamson handed himself in to police in Dundee on May 8 after news of the fraud broke but refused to answer questions during an interview.

Williamson pleaded guilty on indictment to a charge of fraud.

Sheriff Alastair Carmichael deferred sentence until next month for social work background reports and remanded Williamson in custody.