Oswestry rogue trader's sentencing welcomed by Shropshire Council

Stephen Reginald Arthur Wright was paid a total of £16,200 by vulnerable families, among whom were an Alzheimer's patient and a woman with mobility issues, for work that was later found to be substandard and inadequate.

The 32-year-old of Cherry Tree Drive, St Martin's in Oswestry was sentenced to 27 months in prison at Shrewsbury Crown Court for two counts of fraud and six counts of dishonesty, relating to work done at properties, in The Avenue, West Felton, Oswestry, and at Mountford Bridge in 2017 and 2018.

Wright was prosecuted by Shropshire's trading standards unit under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations and the Fraud Act.

Frances Darling, Shropshire Council's trading standards and licensing operations manager said traders like Wright are a "blight on our communities" that bring "financial detriment and hardship" to individuals.

"It is extremely pleasing to see that the court has clearly recognised the seriousness of the crime committed by Stephen Wright against vulnerable members of our community," she said.

"I very much hope that the sentence that has been handed down by the court will deter others from undertaking such illegal activities in the future.

"Trading standards take incidents of rogue trading extremely seriously and we will investigate and use the full weight of the law to bring to justice traders defrauding consumers.

Priorities

"I would like to extend my sincere thanks to all the witnesses who helped officers bring this case to court; they have remained both patient and supportive throughout the investigation and deserve full recognition for the very important role they have played."

Wright must serve at least half his sentence before being released.

Gwilym Butler, Shropshire Council's cabinet member for communities, place planning and regulatory services, added: "It is very sad to hear of cases like this where an individual clearly intends to target and defraud members of our community.

"One of the council's key priorities is to ensure care for those in need at any age.

"Such care is delivered in many different ways, not only through the direct care provided by adult social care services, but also by taking a much broader approach.

"The work of the trading standards team is a key part of the council's efforts to protect vulnerable members of our community and this case is a very clear example of the way in which a very small team punches above its weight to ensure those in need are cared for by tackling appallingly fraudulent trading behaviour.

"This investigative work also protects legitimate businesses and helps the council to ensure businesses grow and succeed, and this can only be good news for our local economy.

"If anyone is considering having work undertaken on their house, they are urged to carry out as much research as possible and to always obtain more than one quote before agreeing to a trader doing any work.

"No one should act as a result of a cold call by any trader."