A ROGUE trader who conned three pensioners out of nearly £180,000 has been told he will spend the next three years and six months in prison.

Simon Fielding 56, was already serving a 35 month sentence after admitting to two counts of fraud and breaching a suspended sentence in March.

MORE TOP STORIES:

And Judge Simon Newell said he had taken that into account when jailing him for his latest crimes.

Preston’s Sessions House heard Fielding conned Darwen man Michael Riding, who is in his 70s, out of £147,380 over a three-year period after lying about work which had never been completed.

And the court heard he conned West Yorkshire couple Jeff and June Andrews out of £30,780 by carrying out inadequate work or completing jobs which didn’t need doing.

The court heard Fielding, of Wardsley Farm, Leagram, Chipping, left his victims feeling “embarrassed” and “concerned for their financial loss”.

Judge Newell said Fielding had preyed on the “vulnerable, ill or aged” for a number of years and the impact on them was the same as if they had been victims of a violent crime.

The court heard Fielding first came around to see Mr Riding in 2011 after the victim had called his company Ribble Valley Roofing to fix a leak at his home in Wyre Crescent.

Prosecutor Paul Brookwell said over the next three years Fielding then invoiced Mr Riding for a series of work which had not been done, including strengthening the internal timber structure of the roof, re-tiling the kitchen, fitting cushion flooring in the kitchen, carrying out a full electrical check and repairing any faults, carrying out insulation work in the loft and installing drainage to the rear garden, and completely removed all damaged pot drainage and replaced it with plastic drains.

Mr Brookwell said the offending only came to light when Mr Riding went to a financial adviser who saw the amount which had been paid to Fielding and saw the work had not been done. He then advised Mr Riding to go to Trading Standards.

Mr Brookwell said in February last year Mr and Mrs Andrews needed work doing to clear moss from the roof of their home in Keighley and saw an advert for another company being run by Fielding, Skipton Roofing.

Fielding told them a number of tiles on the roof were cracked and needed replacing. Over the coming months he then undertook a number of jobs which were deemed to be of an inadequate standard by an independent surveyor,.

Andrew Alty, defending, said his client regretted his actions and his world had been turned upside down since he was jailed.

Mr Alty said: “He is now 56. He is not in good physical health. Any lengthy prison sentence is going to be very physically difficult for him.”

Fielding admitted eight counts of fraud and six counts of engaging as a trader in an unfair commercial practice contrary to the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations.

Judge Newell said: “Many of your victims have been vulnerable, ill, aged or all three. It is humbling and depriving them of their savings. It is nasty and brutal and in many ways has the same impact of being the victim of a violent attack.”

Sergeant Steve Dundon of Blackburn Police said: "I am delighted with the sentence passed today by the Court. Simon Fielding has, yet again, shown that he will not hesitate to prey on the elderly and vulnerable for his own selfish gains.

"In this case, over a period of 2 years, he has gained the trust of the victim and has systematically defrauded him out of over £140,000 for work that was either not necessary, not completed or done to a poor standard.

"We will continue to work closely with our partners to investigate rogue traders, protect the most vulnerable in our communities and bring offenders before the Courts.

"I would advise everyone to research carefully anyone who they intend to carry out work for them and to always say "No" to traders who unexpectedly turn up on your doorstep offering to carry out work."