A landscaper who defrauded an elderly woman out of over €50,000 for poor quality work in her garden has been jailed for a year.
Myles Connors, 37, charged the woman €48,000 for slabbing, weed removal and cementing part of her back garden, then a further €5,000 for power washing and painting her tarmac, reports Breaking News.
Gardaí had the work assessed and found it should have cost €20,000 at most.
The 82-year-old woman complained about the standard of the work and asked for it to stop, but was left feeling she had no option but to allow Connors and his employees to continue, reports Breaking News.
She told the court in her victim impact statement that since being taken advantage of, she no longer feels safe and independent in her own home. The woman, who lives alone and has mobility issues, was left with poor quality slabbing that was uneven and unsecured.
Connors, of College Farm Heights, Newbridge, Co Kildare, pleaded guilty to two counts of deception at a location in Co Dublin on dates in June 2024, reports Breaking News.
Judge Orla Crowe said the offence was deeply disturbing, adding that Connors had put the woman under pressure to write a cheque for the work.
She said Connors told the woman he was upset about the way she had spoken to his employees, which the judge described as “entirely manipulative behaviour,” reports Breaking News.
“He took full advantage of her. She invited someone into her home that she trusted. Her sense of safety has been deeply shaken,” Judge Crowe said.
‘Gross breach of trust’
She said it was a “sustained, controlled and premeditated campaign” against the woman, which represented a “gross breach of trust,” reports Breaking News.
Judge Crowe ordered the release of funds from Connors’ account, which had been frozen, meaning the woman has now been fully restituted.
The judge imposed a two-year sentence and suspended the final 12 months on strict conditions, with Connors also ordered not to have any contact by any means with the victim, reports Breaking News.
Detective Garda Aileen Deely told prosecuting counsel that Connors had previously done work for a neighbour of the victim, who recommended him to the woman after she sought similar work; the neighbour had been charged €5,000 for work in their own garden.
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Gda Deely said that on 6 June 2024, Connors and three employees arrived and began weed removal and cementing the woman’s garden, telling her this would cost €11,600, reports Breaking News.
He showed her a brochure and she selected slabbing, after which he quoted a price of €48,000.
The court heard that Connors had purchased slabbing for €1,200 the previous day, which was the material subsequently used in the woman’s garden, reports Breaking News.
Det Gda Deely said that on the same day, Connors contacted a garage and put down a €1,000 deposit on a Ford Ranger Raptor, trading in his own car with a balance of €35,000 left to pay.
The following day, the slabs and bags of sand — for which Connors had paid a total of €1,420 — were delivered to the woman’s house, and three employees began work, reports Breaking News.
Connors told the woman he required €35,000 of the €48,000 and pressed her to write a cheque for that amount, instructing her to make it out to the company he was buying the vehicle from.
The woman wrote the cheque but later asked Connors’ employees to stop, as she was unhappy with the work and said they were not the slabs she had ordered, reports Breaking News.
Connors called to the elderly woman’s home and told her he was very upset about what she had said to his employees, also telling her his wife was very upset about it.
The woman reluctantly allowed them to continue the work and felt she could not say no, reports Breaking News.
The court heard that on 14 June 2024, Connors power-hosed the tarmac and charged her €5,000, also painting it black, which she had not asked for. She then wrote a cheque for €18,000 to cover the remaining balance, reports Breaking News.
Garda complaint
She received a handwritten receipt and continued to express disappointment about the standard of the work, later making a complaint to gardaí.
Gardaí had the work assessed by a member of a professional landscaping body, who estimated that €20,000 should have more than covered the work if done properly, reports Breaking News.
They also reported the work had been carried out to a very poor standard, with flowerbeds laid using loose bricks and paving that was uneven and not properly secured, with the material used costing less than €3,000.
Connors was arrested and maintained his right to silence, making no admissions, and has one previous conviction for criminal damage, reports Breaking News.
The elderly woman told the court she had just been released from hospital and wanted some weed removal done around her home, having invited Connors — someone she trusted — to do the work, but he had other ideas.
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