A builder who conned his client on a £700,000 home refurbishment has been jailed for four years following an investigation by Trading Standards officers.
Jimmy Lee, director of Myint Construction Ltd, was hired in February 2018 to carry out works on a private property in South Kensington. The client entered into a contract with the builder after being given fraudulent references and a site visit to a property where he had not worked.
Lee provided misleading information about time frames and delays, leaving his client's property in disrepair and unfinished.
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The builder received payments from the client to pay subcontractors into his personal account, which he had misrepresented as a business account. He spent a substantial portion of that money in casinos instead of paying subcontractors and submitted fraudulent invoices to the client.
‘A signal to fraudulent operators’
In January 2020, Kensington and Chelsea Council’s Trading Standards team were made aware of Lee’s conduct and deceptive trading practices. After a three-year investigation, Lee was prosecuted for fraud and deception.
He pleaded not guilty to two counts of fraudulent trading contrary to s.993(1) of the Companies Act 2006. But after a three-week trial, Lee was found guilty of all charges before him.
Lee was sentenced to four years in prison and disqualified from being a company director for eight years at Southwark Crown Court on 15 December.
Councillor Cem Kemahli, lead member for planning and public realm at Kensington and Chelsea Council, which brought the prosecution against Lee, said: “Cheating our residents won’t go unpunished and this charlatan has rightfully been prosecuted for defrauding their client. This action is a signal to all other fraudulent operators that we won’t hesitate to take action.”
The Trading Standards team will now be considering any proceeds of crime obtained as a result of Lee’s criminality.
