AN ANGLESEY couple who created the world’s first Welsh singing toy say their business is facing a uncertain future after they fell victim to an e-mail scam and lost £18,000.

Having decided there was a “real lack” of Welsh toys on the market for newborn daughter Cari Môn in 2015, Awen and Baron Walkden took matters into their own hands, launching their ‘Y Seren Swynol’ product through Si Lwli Cymru a year later.

The product proved to be popular worldwide and as such, a second was then created in the form of a red dragon called ‘Draigi’.

However, Awena says the future is now looking bleak for the Si Lwli Cymru after they lost such a large sum of money to the sophisticated e-mail scam.

Both Awena and Baron believe that the Chinese factory they were dealing with had their e-mails hacked and these messages were then being altered by the hackers. The company itself did not know the e-mails were being tampered with.

Si Lwli had arranged to have the latest edition of their Draigi product to be manufactured at the site - the only one able to create singing toys. However, problems quickly began to arise.

“We had been discussing the production process with the new manufacturer for Draigi between April and November 2018,” Awena said.

“We first put down a deposit of around £4,000 and didn’t really question this but now with hindsight on our side, we feel we probably should have done.

“We sent the money over and noticed the location of the manufacturer we sent the money to had changed to Malaysia. The e-mails sent by the hackers posing as the company we were dealing with said this was for tax reasons and re-assured us.

“It was one excuse after another to be honest, but by the time we’d paid the full sum, after they had pressured us to a deadline, it was too late. We aren’t holding out much hope of getting the money back either.

“We’re gutted and so are our customers - who have been very supportive and have even set up a fundraising page for us.”

Awena, who is now expecting her third child, added that the business is now “slowing down” production wise.

“We’re a small business and so to lose £18,000 is a real blow,” she added.

“Without gathering some sort of money together, we’ll be unable to carry on.”

One of Si Lwli’s customers, Nikita Jones, has set up a fundraiser to help them re-coup at least some of the money. (To donate, visit: https://www.gofundme.com/f/silwli-cymru?fbclid=IwAR2jHk54iUJY-IaUXZoX0ZT_xFvNZir-VAnFyG5YTzKGRTFw3INly7zlNQA)