Roofing scammers took pensioner’s life savings

ROOKED roofers wiped out a pensioner’s entire life savings after they took the roof off his bungalow and lied about the work that needed doing.

- JASON EVANS Reporter [e-mail]

Dave McEvoy and Joseph Ellis took more than £33,000 and they even suggested the man and his wife could remortgage their property to release equity.

‘The judge at Swansea Crown Court told the pair they had “ruthlessly and cynically” extorted money from their elderly victims, in their 70s and 80s.

Cailtin Brazel, prosecuting, told the court that last summer the couple searched online for companies to clean the roof of their bungalow at Ystalyfera in the Swansea Valley.

She said 21-year-old Ellis - who owned Trustwise Roofing Ltd - visited the couple and quoted them £1,250 for the job. The sum was paid by bank transfer.

‘The court heard Ellis and 51-year-old McEvoy started work the next day and began power-washing the roof, but reported that several tiles would need replacing and started removing them before asking for more cash.

‘The court heard that over the following days the defendants reported more issues with the roof, saying the felt layer needed replacing, the beams needed strengthening or replacing, and that the walls in the eaves would need to be rebuilt - each time demanding more money.

‘The prosecutor said that by now the bungalow had been stripped of its roof and the husband felt pressurised to keep paying the extra sums.

In total, the victims paid the pair £33,200 and when all the money was gone the defendants suggested the equity in the property could be released to pay more money.