East Lancashire conman jailed (From Lancashire Telegraph)
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East Lancashire conman jailed
4:00pm Friday 27th July 2012 in News
By Dan Clough, Reporter
AN East Lancashire man who dressed up as a builder and a police officer to con vulnerable people out of thousands of pounds has been jailed.
Colin Dornan, 52, of Avenue Parade, Accrington, was sentenced to more than six years in prison after taking money from elderly people, one of whom had terminal cancer.
On one occasion, in January last year, Dornan, who admitted burglary and conspiracy to defraud, claimed to be a builder when he knocked on the door of a 69-year-old cancer sufferer in Montgomery Street, Oldham.
The cost of the work was agreed at £700 and Dornan later went to the house, replacing a window and placing cement around various roof tiles.
Three weeks later, Dornan returned to the victim’s home and asked for £675 for the hire of two skips, which would be required for the roof work.
A month later, he phoned the victim and asked for £595 for roofing materials.
The money was handed to him a few days later in cash.
During the following weeks and months, the victim paid Dornan a further £820 for inspection fees, £720 for scaffolding and £140 for maintenance work.
No roof work was ever undertaken, no roofing inspe-ctor ever attended, no skips were ever delivered and no maintenance work carried out.
On Tuesday, September 6, Dornan returned and asked the victim to unlock a gate so he could leave building material in the back yard to start work.
The victim unlocked the gate and when he returned inside his house, he found Dornan in his kitchen. The victim later discovered £600 had been stolen.
In separate incidents last year, Dornan stole money from an 81-year-old woman in Abbey Hey, Manchester, he had done building work for and a 90-year-old woman in Avenue Parade, Accrington, while claiming to be a police officer.
He had also attempted to steal from a 77-year-old woman in Bury while claiming to be a police officer but left empty handed.
At Minshull Street Crown Court in Manchester he was jailed for six years and nine months.
An accomplice, Timothy Ray-nor, 42, of Store Street, Darwen received a nine month sent-ence suspended for 12 months for conspiracy to defraud.
