Adam Coote, 36, from Shoreditch, London, was sentenced at Southwark Crown Court on Friday alongside his accomplices, Andrew Rickard, 51, and Sahila Kauser, 34, who were handed suspended sentences of 18 months each, Court News reported.
Coote began the operation in 2012 shortly after being released from a four-year prison sentence for carrying out the same scam in Liverpool in Manchester. The first time around, Coote used the stolen money to splurge on a luxury flat, a £2,000 fridge with built in television, pink champagne, a chauffeur driven Range Rover, and lavish meals at London’s Claridge’s restaurant.
After meeting Rickard in prison, Coote and his accomplices began targeting properties being let online, using fake agencies with names such as Belgravia Property Group, Mayfair Residential and Park Lane Residential to offer properties in London, Bristol, Birmingham and Walsall.
The group forced potential tenants to hand over six months’ worth of rent and then made off with a total of £26,585 in cash after informing so-called customers that they had failed credit checks. In order to cover their tracks, the fraudsters carried out a number of legitimate transactions, the court heard.
The fraudulent activity was brought to police attention when they received calls from victims complaining of the group’s ‘excuses and lies’.
Prosecutor Warwick Tatford said: “In its simplest form the fraud involved establishing false letting agencies which would be used to approach landlords who were selling properties on the internet.
“The defendants were able to secure access to the properties and keys and a number of prospective tenants would then be shown around the properties.”
He added: “Prospective tenants were provided with access keys of the properties and when they intended to move into the property they would find there was already a tenant in place who had also signed a tenancy with the company.”
Coote, appearing at court via video link admitted to one count of conspiracy to commit fraud by false representation, with Rickard and Kauser also pleading guilty.
Handing down the sentence, Judge Jeffrey Pegden QC, said: “It is perhaps an indication of how those seeking accommodation should be wary using the internet to look for accommodation.
“It was plainly a persistent fraud and it was plainly significantly planned.”
