A former Canberra builder who tricked a family into paying him more than $60,000 for a renovation has been spared jail after he was sentenced today.
Clinton Dotta, 34, pleaded guilty in the ACT Supreme Court to obtaining the money by deception.
He ran a business known as 'It's a Bargain Building Services', which was contracted to complete a renovation on a Canberra home in 2016.
The court heard Dotta received the payment after providing his clients with approved architectural drawings and a building commencement notice.
But there were long delays.
A retaining wall was built and rendered in the backyard, but it took months, with long periods between when tradesmen would arrive to go on with the work.
When the clients enquired about the documents, they discovered they were fraudulent, with the stamp used to approve the drawings not in use at the time of the approval.
It was also revealed the building commencement notice was issued for a different project in 2014.
Dotta's lawyer, James Sabharwal, urged the court not to send him to jail, pointing to the fact he had already paid back the money with interest.
"He's acknowledged his offending," Mr Sabharwal said.
"He has shown remorse."
Justice John Burns told Dotta the crime was premeditated and involved a degree of sophistication.
But he acknowledged Dotta's actions since.
"I do accept you have repaid the amount you obtained from the victims with interest," he said.
The court heard Dotta was made bankrupt in 2017, and is now a nightclub manager, with no builder's licence or desire to return to running his own business.
He was given a suspended sentence of 12 months and will have to complete 200 hours of community service.
