Sentence out of proportion with the crime. The father got separated from his children all these years too. Poor judgement all around.

Surendra, Osaka, Japan

Wow, you British must be wealthy if you believe that 250,000 pounds is a small amount of money. Frankly I think they got what they deserved, this was an elaborate and pre-meditated crime. If the length of the sentence is long in comparison to crimes of violence, etc. increase the sentences for these

Rick, Edmonton, Canada

Frauds -no doubt. More telling is to see £1 million a year earning TV reporters vying with one another to feed on the misery of a naive, unfortunate fraudster whose dream in life was to get hold of £250000 and a Range Rover.

Joy Thomas, hereford, UK

No Oscar nomination after all then.

E J Murray, Kerry, Ireland

Once again totally out of proportion "British Justice". Assault, burglary, theft, etc etc all regularly attract less than 6 years. They were wrong, but 6 years is ridiculous. Shame on you Judge, Shame on you.

DENIS DOWEN, SEATON CANOE, ENGLAND

well so much for british justice putting these 2 dangerous criminals away for 6 years each.the 250k they fiddled is chicken feed to some of the financial crooks who are still alive and kicking ,either through insider dealing or otherwise.that is apart from those who kill on the road,mug, rape .etc

le berger, MIDDLESBROUGH, u.k.

I am in no way a supporter of fraud but I echo the sentiment of the others who say that this country has truely lost its grip. The article above is worded as if the couple had committed a "despicable" mass murder. No previous convictions, average middle class people... standard UK system targets.

Jen, Durham, England

It seems that defrauding £250K from an insurance company is far more heinous than the crime of benefit fraud. Arbitrary sentencing brings the judicial system into disrepute once more. A drunk driver killing a child would get fewer years.

Dwight Vandryver, Scholar Green, Cheshire, UK

Judges are constantly moaning about how their discretion is curtailed by Parliament and the Government and as a consequence of that there is a prison crisis, yet this judge has passed a totally OTT sentence for a non-violent offence.

Johnathan, North Wales, United Kingdom

The poor sons! How can parents do that to their children?
Thank god that there is some justice in the world!

Christine, Glasgow,

So now can we expect six years inside for our MP's fiddling their expenses accounts since a precedents been set.
We can only hope!

Craig, Middlesbrough,

So can we expect our MP's fiddling their expense accounts to get six years inside as well.
I doubt it somehow but we can still hope.

Craig, Middlesbrough,

Anyone for a canoe holiday?

Neil, Gloucestershire, England

The Darwins get six years and that cretin Blake Fielder gets 27 months for what he did-good old British judges-totally clueless.

Iain Chapman, Marciac, France

Meanwhile the same justice system frees Bin Laden's right-hand man in Europe and gives him a house and benefits - all at the taxpayers' expense.

(...and he'll be exempt from the new incapacity benefits checks.)

Sean, Surrey, UK

Shame they didn't do something really serious, like rape, murder, stab or otherwise assualt someone, they would have been given 6 months and compensation for having to serve a sentence. Yet again we copy the US with ridiculous sentences for minor crimes.

Ricardo, London, UK

Absolutely absurd indeed when vicious murderers get away with crimes so often supported by this world's unjust law.

Nonetheless, everyone should come to Panama! It is indeed paradise!

yira, Panama City, Panama

The Darwins were tried and convicted of deception and fraud.
We have MP's who, by deception, claimed hundreds and
thousands of pounds. .Some claimed that their main
residence was a second home when it patently was not used
as such.
I hope Sir George Young is comparing these cases.

Molly, Cheshire, UK

As someone said "Remind me what do you get for murder?". But if the reason for a custodial sentence is rehabilitation why the draconian 6-years behind bars if not as an example.

Perhaps our judges spent too much time in bed with and looking after the interests of city types!

JR, Sutton Coldfield, UK

Hang on, you have recordings of their telephone conversations from before the issue blew up. Is this proof that all calls in and out of the UK are being recorded or what?

B Redfern, Zdole, Slovenia

How can a judge add time to a sentence (as he stated that he did) because her actions had caused exceptional grief for her sons, when she was on trial for fraud against various financial institutions; not on trial for causing stress to her relatives?

joe ruxton, Guildford, UK

Well in regards to those who feel Mr.& Mrs. D didn't hurt someone, remember this, for all those insurance frauds where the insurance companies looses money, those of us that are on the straight and narrow end up paying more for our premiums to cover the companies loses. That indeed hurts many of us.

Gregory, Pasadena ,

Obvious they were going to get a tough sentence. Jails in NuLabour’s Britain jails are for people who by accident or despair broke the law once. The chronically criminal, the violent, the murderously intolerant, all those deserve freedom and respect. Without forgetting, of course, compensation.

Roger, Douglas,

Unreal. Callousness bordering on the psychopathic.

Stuart, Manchester, England

I feel sorry for them. To be driven to do what they did must have been terribly awful... and once started, it gets harder each passing day. All they ever wanted was a happy life, I ma sure they never meant anyone any harm.

D Young, London, UK

Six years is a very severe sentence for an insurace fraud. If we are to jail everyone for this kind of fraud they will have to put barbed wire around the British Isles. This trial was driven by media hype if Sky News would put the same effort into the knife crimes things would be a lot better.

Gerald, New York, USA

How much is it going to cost taxpayers to bang these two up for over six years each? A six-month sentence each with a £500k fine each, repayable in a set time, would be a better option. They are hardly a threat to public safety. Is 'hurting feelings' now a criminal offence?

Paul, Coventry,

As usually , the reality is better that fiction. This story is like a opera soup. Unbeilable that is to easy get a fake passport.
Of course they are in hard times now.
They are old, and will be in jail and with out money.
Please use your talents for good things

Luis Sanchez, Atizapan, Mexico

These seem shameful people, but I admire them; perhaps as a one time canoeist? Their only real crime, seems to have been to cause unecessary emergency services alerts. It is hard to sympathise with the prissy views and reactions of the investigating officer and, apparently their sons.

Hugh Riddle, Littlestone, UK

Unbelievable What is the matter with you people in the media. These people commit minor fraud in comparison to some of the corporate fraudsters we have seen recently and they get headlines every night and constant vilification. Someone kills or maims and they get a few years in prison. crazy

David Morton, Stourbridge, UK

Why all the pity for them. They broke the law and deserve what they got. Instead of whining about their so called harsh sentences, campaign for harsher sentences for murderers, rapists, and paedophiles etc. There are plenty of barren islands off the coast where prisons could be built to house them.

john Moore, Bradford, UK

Yes, they are pretty low for lying to their poor sons like that, but 6 and a half years each?

Fracturing someone's skull and then trying to pay them off doesn't even get you a third of that sentence!

Ah well, as soon as there's £££ involved it suddenly becomes more serious...

Hibbo, Dundee, Great Britain

I don't understand what lying to their sons has to do with it. It's not the Governments job to send people to prison for family quarrels. I agree that these sentences seem way too harsh and i hope they lodge succesful appeals against the amount of jail time they will have to serve.

Dave, Bromley,

he is not a blooming canoeist he is a prison officer!!!!!

Phil, York, england

These people are hardly despicable for swindling something as lowly as 250,000. What exactly does that buy nowadays? Nothing, which is why they had to move away to spend it. Are the rogue traders in the city who, having been caught out dodgily dealing in millions upon millions, reproached like this?

Liam, Sheffield, UK

It seems you get sentenced in proportion to the publicity surrounding your case - deceiving your children and undermining their lives is not a crime as yet. The psychology of all this is a bit beyond me - 250K DOES go a long way in Latin America, but their motives must have been deeper.

jim cormick, buenos aires, argentina

I am shocked (and appalled) that a visa was granted to John Darwin under his false name 'John Jones' in the first place.

MB, Birmingham, United Kingdom

you can drive a car whilst drunk or recklessly and dangerously, kill several people through no fault of their own. Sentence 3/5 years and disqualified for 3 years. Show a little remourse and a judge will take pity and reduce it to 2/3 years. And politicians wonder why the law is such an ass.

paul, birmingham, uk

Most arguments here are flawed. While I am not suggesting that those that commit violent crime should not get longer sentances, it is illogical to say theirs should be shorter to make them more comparable overall. They committed fraud, were aware of the consquences and must accept the punishment.

Phil, London, UK

Ludicrous sentences. Yet again our judges prove they have no common sense. Is it any wonder our country is at the mercy of knife crime when minor fraud (and £250,000 is very minor) attracts sentences like this and knife carriers get six months. This Worshipful Lord High Justiceship is a fool.

eric campbell, harrogate, uk

So the liar gets the same sentence as the one who pleaded guilty, strange justice!

Christopher, Hindhead,

There is something seriously wrong in our so called justice system when fraudsters get longer prison terms than murderers

Mike Powell, Saltburn,

Great to see justice done, how many people in the city have
done much worse than the Darwins and got away with it
lets see some people in the sq mile put in prison, of course
it wont happen, but why???

capt bob, Jerusalem, UK

Remind me please someone, what do you get for murder?

Richard. M., Cricklewood, London,

I'm not sure we should fill our prisons with minor-league fraudsters like these. Nevertheless, the ineptitude of this pair (remember the photograph of the two of them, happily smiling, freely available on the Internet?) make this an interesting story. And we're all fond of schadenfreud, aren't we?

Cronan, London, UK

Expect quietly reported successful appeals against sentence by both Defendants in 6-12 months' time.

Neil Johnson, Bedford, UK

What a ludicrous penalty driven by the media frenzy. No-one was injured or killed, . They are not career criminals just sad, desperate people who came up with an ill-concieved crime. Contrast their sentence with the 27 months Fielder-Civil received for vicious, violent crime and perverting justice

Peter C, Ravensburg, Germany

I think the sentences are rather harsh, but as usual in this country crimes involving money are clamped down on far more heavily than violent crimes, people who commit vile sex crimes or child cruelty seem to get off lightly by comparison.
The ammount of money involved isn't that huge.

rita, Chesterfield,

To Luke of Nottingham,

And her Sons? Put through the trauma of the death of their dad by her lies? And then, the new trauma of the real truth: years of deceit and plans for a life of luxury in South America that excluded them? What do you have to say to the sons then? That they have a good mother?

Bill, Suzhou, China

Basically we, tax payers, have to pay for a total of 13 years in prison for the 'hurt' feelings of their sons and a ridiculous small amount of money. Yes, they are desicable, but this sentence is ridiculous an an insult to victims of real crimes. Murderers & Rapist would get less if not just a fine

LT, Warminster, UK

"I cant believe the coverage...doesnt deserve such hatred."

It's not so much the fact they commited fraud, which however illegal usually seems rather entertaining, but the fact she told their own children that he had died whilst maintaing the emotion needed. That's about as low as it gets.

Ben, IOM,

They would have got less time for murdering somebody for the same amount of money!

A Thorn, London,

12Years for swindling insurance (which is one of the biggest scams going anyway). Come on!!! People carrying knives walk free.
I'm not condoning what they did, but its not exactly Bonnie and Clyde is it?
Britain has lost its grip.

Kevin, Durham,

Funny how crimes involving money result in long prison sentences, yet assaults against the person merit a couple of years at most.

Sean, Surrey, UK

Only six years? Wow.

Joe, New York, US

Excessive sentences, they didn't even hurt anyone.

It seems crimes against insurance companies are more serious that crimes against the person.

JonB, Manchester, UK

I cant believe the coverage this poor woman is getting. Its a basic insurance fraud at the end of the day. Millions happen every year, and the number grows and grows. This woman is being vilified like a murderer or child molester - please leave her alone! She doesnt deserve such hatred.

Luke, Nottingham,

These two are the personification of Mr and Mrs Dull. Just very ordinary people up to amatuerish tricks for quite a small sum.
£250,000 would not have gone far in South America. They are not Mr and Mrs Big of train robber fame. There must be small time spivs all over the country up to similar games

Colin, Carmarthen, United Kingdom

"MR Darwin a former prisor guard..." Ha ha he'll be getting the love in the big house when convicted!

John Smith, London, UK

So very deserved.

Ben, IOM,

In the footsteps of the former Walsall MP John Stonehouse - there is always another one who tries a 'REGGIE PERRIN' in the world, but none really have ever spectacularised John's attempt !!!!

I spoke to the Stonehouse family in depth during 2002. To the Darwin sons I say - forgive your parents !!

ian payne, walsall,