A ruthless fraudster who used his charm and persuasion to con four people in North Cardiff out of £175,000 has been sent to prison for over five years and given a 10-year Criminal Behaviour Order.
William Hanson, 50, from Trowbridge Green, Cardiff was sentenced to five years and one month in prison for thirteen charges at Cardiff Crown Court on Tuesday (17 December) after pleading guilty to all the offences before the trial date was set.
Hanson, otherwise known as Willam Connors or Bill Austin, grossly over changed for work carried out on his victims' properties in Whitchurch, Llandaff North, and Llandaff, exaggerating the severity of the work required and/or carrying out work that was not needed.
All the work carried out was to a very poor standard, which resulted in all the victims having to spend even more money to remedy Hanson's shoddy work.
The prosecution's case was that Hanson pressurised and persuaded his victims to have work carried out on their properties, gaining their trust and convincing them he was a competent builder.
A 93-year-old victim, who sadly died before the sentencing, had urged her son not to cancel her agreement with Hanson, or to involve the police, as he seemed to be a ‘very nice man' who would ‘do a good job and give her a fair price'.
In mitigation, it was made clear to the court that although Hanson did not give a guilty plea at the earliest opportunity, he did so before the date set for trial, saving the court time and money.
Although he has significant previous convictions, the defence highlighted that the most recent was in 2012, claiming he had tried to move away from his criminal past.
As part of the sentencing, an application was made for a Criminal Behaviour Order to prevent Hanson offering or carrying out building or home improvement services ever again. Although a lifetime order wasn't granted, a 10-year order was, which will restrict Hanson's business opportunities when we he leaves prison.
A Proceeds of Crime Application was made to the court, so Cardiff Council can look to recover as much money as possible as compensation for his victims.
Norma Mackie, the council's cabinet member responsible for shared regulatory services, said: "It sickens me that a man like Hanson could prey on such vulnerable members of our society to rob them blind, while continuing to charm them into thinking he was a credible tradesman.
"It isn't the first time we've heard of an agreed price being given for work to be carried out, but then as the work is being done, new ‘defects or issues' are identified which don't actually exist, significantly increasing the cost. He is a conman, and he now has time to contemplate his crimes from behind bars."
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