Following an investigation by the Shared Trading Standards Service supported by the Joint Case Management Unit, Danny Preece, age 47, a trader residing at Walkers Yard, Eversley Road, Aborfield Cross, entered guilty pleas to one count of Fraud and three counts of Engaging in Unfair Commercial Practice at Reading Crown Court on the 16th October 2023.
On the 24th November 2023 Mr Preece appeared before Reading Crown Court where he was sentenced to a 40 month immediate custodial sentence.
The offending dated back to early 2021 when Mr Preece dishonestly exploited an extremely vulnerable elderly couple, aged 91 and 89, who, over a period of approximately three months, paid the defendant in excess of £43,500 for works they had not commissioned, and which were, in the main, unnecessary, vastly overpriced and completed to an extremely poor standard.
The surveyor who examined the work carried out concluded that the majority of work he inspected for which quotes had been provided was either sub-standard or had not been carried out. He also found that it was over-priced, in some cases disproportionately so, was unnecessary or performed to such a poor standard that it needs to be completely re-done.
In passing sentence Miss Recorder Drake said,
“You befriended two vulnerable people, not least because of their age and {one victim having} dementia, but probably due to the lockdowns in 2020 after which elderly people craved contact. Your acts were deliberate and you targeted them to get money for yourself and your family. Greed and laziness were your driving factors.
You were made subject to a Criminal Behaviour Order only 2 years before you befriended them, when it was made blindingly obvious to you that you shouldn’t seek work in this way and that you must inform people of relevant cooling-off periods.
I agree with the prosecution that this is a case of the highest culpability. This was a sustained campaign against two people in which you involved others while you inveigled your way into their lives. Your offending has cast a shadow over their final years.”
Commenting on the sentence, Cllr Ian Shenton, Executive Member for Environment, Sport and Leisure said: “The sentence handed down to Mr Preece today reflected the severity of the offending which was perpetrated on a vulnerable elderly local couple. Our trading standards service will look to investigate matters where victims are subject to fraud and unfair trading of this nature and we would urge residents that have concerns about activity of this nature to contact the service on 01635 519930 or e-mail tsadvice@westberks.gov.uk”.
