A former professional footballer fleeced customers of his roofing business out of thousands of pounds and blew it on his crippling gambling addiction.
Brian Hunter, a qualified and skilled roofer, pocketed £46,000 from three victims for work that was either substandard, not done or only partially done - and even took money from an elderly couple which they had set aside for their funerals.
Newcastle Crown Court heard Gateshead trading standards received a number of complaints about Hunter, who was trading as Premier Roofing and Building Developments North East. Penny Hall, prosecuting, said: "Each complainant paid significant sums for him to do work to their homes or other property and received partial work which was substandard and one received no work at all."
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Three of those who complained went on to make statements about their dealings with Hunter. The first was quoted a price of £26,578 to build an extension. Hunter repeatedly requested payments from the man and time and time again failed to do the work as he had promised and made excuses to put the start date back. In the end the victim had paid the entire amount and Hunter did none of the work and failed to attend as promised then stopped communicating.
The second victim, a managing director, handed over £3,850 for roofing work. Hunter removed half of the roof tiles and other items but then failed to return the following day. Despite making almost daily promises to attend, he didn't return but continued to make requests for payments.
The third victim, who is 80, was quoted £5,000 for work, which Hunter then increased by £2,500, which he paid. Two months later, Hunter removed the roof tiles but then said he couldn't source the new tiles he needed so put the old ones back on.
He then asked the pensioner to loan him £1,000, which he agreed. He also gave him a further £1,400 to do work on his garage roof but that work was not carried out.
Hunter went on to ask for £2,500 for tiles and said he would refund the victim but didn't. He eventually did put some tiles on the property but failed to do other work which had been agreed. He agreed a repayment schedule but only ever paid back £250.
Hunter then asked the pensioner to loan him more money to buy a new van and he agreed. He never repaid the money or did any further work.
After a storm, the pensioner lodged an insurance claim but the insurers wouldn't pay out because roof tiles fell down due to poor workmanship. The pensioner told Hunter and made repeated requests for him to repair it but he didn't attend. Another roofer found none of the tiles had been secured properly.
In a victim impact statement, the pensioner said: "I really put my trust in him but he left me feeling dejected and let down. I was keen to help a small local businessman but the more I supported him the more he stole from me.
"He knew me and my wife had serious medical problems but went on to deceive us. Money I had saved for our funerals was used to loan him money. He didn't pay it back and made endless empty promises.
"I used birthday money I received from my son but again he just cheated me. I even put him in touch with a friend of mine and they also lost money which I felt hugely embarrassed about and I have given my friend the money.
"I had to pay more money to have the roof put right after his disastrous workmanship. We feel very vulnerable and have lost confidence in people.
"He was aware we have serious health problems but continued to prey on us. His despicable actions have left us mentally scarred but he has shown no remorse for what he has done to us."
Hunter, 41, of Dewley Road, Slatyford, Newcastle, who has a previous conviction for robbery in 2016 and drink driving in 2004, pleaded guilty to participation by a sole trader in a fraudulent business and two counts of committing misleading actions under unfair trading regulations.
The court heard Hunter has a significant gambling addiction and is £10,000 in debt, on top of what he owes his victims.
He wrote a letter to the court saying he used to be a professional footballer for Cambridge and Notts County then played in the Alliance league but suffered an injury which ended his career. The court heard he is a qualified roofer who did lead work on Newcastle Civic Centre and other well known buildings.
He said he has had a gambling addiction since he was 18 or 19 and has lost thousands of pounds. Hunter said: "I've spent every penny I've ever had on gambling. I've never intentionally defrauded anyone.
"When I took payments from people in this case I had good intentions of completing the work. Through gambling I've fallen from a position where I had everything to now being back with my parents and getting Universal Credit.
"I feel immense guilt because of it and I want to pay back the people who have lost out as a result of my behaviour."
The court heard he is "truly remorseful" and has been getting help from Gamblers Anonymous for the first time.
Judge Amanda Rippon said his "pernicious addiction" caused the offending rather than him preying on the victims due to being "dishonest through and through" like some rogue traders. But she added: "These offences are horrible, they are mean. I despise them.
"Prisons are full. You are not dangerous but you deserve a prison sentence." The judge deferred sentence until August 14.
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