Rogue trader gets suspended jail sentence
A builder who left a woman with a gaping hole where her kitchen once stood has been handed a suspended jail sentence.
Gary Roberts told his victim to pay more than £17,000 for new windows and a rear extension in 2021 that he never completed.
The 60-year-old also paid himself more than £11,000 in funds from his GR Developments 1 Ltd company at the time that it was entering liquidation.
Roberts, of Old Spot Way, Winsford, was sentenced to six months in prison, suspended for two years, at Chester Magistrates’ Court on Monday 31st March 2025.
He was also ordered to complete 20 days of community rehabilitation activity, pay £1,000 in costs, and a £154 surcharge.
David Snasdell, chief investigator at the Insolvency Service, said: “Gary Roberts left his victim in a state of utter desperation after wrecking her home. He never should have even signed a contract with her, as he knew his company was in financial trouble.
“The back of the victim’s house was completely exposed to the elements, having been knocked down from the kitchen. Roberts and his company also left a huge mess in her garden, with debris and rubble everywhere.
“Protecting the public from rogue traders such as Roberts is something the Insolvency Service takes extremely seriously. Fraudulent behaviour which causes clear financial harm to innocent people will be thoroughly investigated by the agency.”
Roberts signed a contract with his customer at the start of May 2021, promising to complete an extension to the rear of her property.
Within a week, the victim had paid Roberts £10,000 as a deposit. A further payment of £7,000 was made at the end of June that year.
However Roberts never finished the project. The victim completed her extension in April 2022 after employing other tradesmen and lost out on the £17,000 she had handed over to Roberts.
In May 2021, just weeks after signing the contract with his victim, Roberts received advice from professionals about placing GR Developments 1 Ltd into liquidation. He also paid himself £11,513 in company money during May and July 2021 when he knew that GR Developments 1 Ltd was insolvent. GR Developments 1 Ltd was eventually dissolved in January 2023.
Roberts was subsequently banned as a company director for 10 years for his misconduct at GR Developments 1 Ltd, with the disqualification in place until February 2034. He was also ordered to pay his victim more than £10,000 in compensation.
Got a story? Email [email protected]
