Trader who preyed on pensioners spared jail

A rogue Black Country builder preyed on vulnerable pensioners by overcharging them for shoddy work on their homes they did not want or need.

Davia Gibbons appeared before Wolverhampton Crown Court where he admitted eight charges involving misleading trading, fraud and threatening to cause criminal damage.

The 28-year-old pulled bricks from a wall at the home of one victim.

The anxious man, in his 70s, then paid £630 cash for work he did not want done to the property in Park Village, Wolverhampton.

Another victim, a 91-year-old divorcee found a gang of workers on the roof of his Tettenhall home 24 hours after telling Gibbons he did not want work.

An 82-year-old woman was charged £650 for £74 worth of work on her home in Moxley by Gibbons, who traded under the name of Tradeside Home Improvements Ltd. Prosecutor Mr

Kevin Saunders said: "He did not seek out the three victims but, once contact was established, he took advantage of their vulnerability."

Gibbons, from Cornfield, Pendeford, struck between May and September 2009.

He was given a 12-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, 100 hours' unpaid work and told to pay £5,000 costs and £780 compensation.