A rogue builder is behind bars after targeting an elderly customer with shoddy and overpriced work.
Alexander Brewis, 42, charged a vulnerable victim £13,800 to do roofing work and cladding in a bathroom – work that should have only been worth around £3,250.
Brewis, trading as Storm Roofing and Property Maintenance, was sentenced to two and a half years in prison at Teesside Crown Court on Thursday (March 14).
He had pleaded guilty to two offences of fraud in relation to work carried out at a property in Middlesbrough in 2019 and 2020.
In his sentencing, the judge highlighted the seriousness of the offence and said Brewis had deliberately taken advantage of an elderly victim.
The court heard how an investigation by Middlesbrough Council’s Trading Standards team revealed Brewis had originally been asked to quote for clearing out the victim’s guttering, but that quickly spiralled.
Work was then left incomplete, or finished to a very poor standard, for an inflated price – leaving the property in a state of unsafe disrepair.
Judith Hedgley, Head of Middlesbrough Council’s Public Protection service, said: “This despicable crime highlights how vulnerable consumers are being targeted by unscrupulous traders.
“Such crimes can have a devasting impact both on the state of the property, requiring immediate remedial action, and on the individuals concerned. This judgement reflects that.
“We will continue to use all enforcement means necessary to bring people to justice and protect vulnerable consumers.”
Middlesbrough Mayor Chris Cooke, the Council’s Executive Member for Public Protection, said: “This result demonstrates how Middlesbrough Council will always put the safety of vulnerable residents at the forefront of its work and shows that criminal behaviour like this will never be tolerated in our town.
“I commend our dedicated Trading Standards team whose hard work led to this rogue trader being taken off the streets, unable to inflict on others the same torment this victim suffered.”
