Jail for con-men who targeted Horncastle and Woodhall Spa

Riley Smith, 42, of Sunrise Meadow Travellers site in Bluntisham, Cambridgeshire, and William Gaskin, 42, of Rose View Drive Travellers’ Site in Holbech, Lincolnshire, were sentenced at Teeside Crown Court last week, where they were jailed for three years and nine months.

It follows an investigation started in February 2017.

The duo were jailed after pleading guilty to conspiring to defraud elderly and vulnerable victims in relation to property repairs carried out at their homes.

An investigation began in February 2017 after concerned relatives reported work conducted at the home of their 80-year-old relative who lived alone at an address in Filey, North Yorkshire.

Following her admission to hospital and later residential care, the relatives then discovered cheques for £94,500 had been paid to the pair between January and October 2016 for works carried out to her drive, gardens and roof.

Police have confirmed the pair have been known to target the Horncastle and Woodhall areas in the past.