0:00:02 > 0:00:08We're investigating one of the most shocking areas of crime and it can hit us all right on our doorsteps.
0:00:08 > 0:00:13From cold-calling con men to rip-off rogue traders, we're determined to fight back.
0:00:13 > 0:00:19All over the UK, award-winning police and Trading Standards teams are tackling them
0:00:19 > 0:00:23and you've not been shy about telling us your views.
0:00:23 > 0:00:29Today, an audacious crook pays the price for conning almost £1 million out of West Yorkshire consumers.
0:00:29 > 0:00:35I've been in business myself quite a while and I thought I could tell a shifty person.
0:00:35 > 0:00:37I believed this man 100%.
0:00:37 > 0:00:41A pair of rogue builders from Oxfordshire are brought to justice
0:00:41 > 0:00:44after fleecing their victims out of £100,000.
0:00:44 > 0:00:47I realised I'd been scammed for certain
0:00:47 > 0:00:52the day we found the toilet unplumbed in the middle of the kitchen floor.
0:00:52 > 0:00:58Plus the innovative online warning system that helps communities fight back against local crime.
0:00:58 > 0:01:04I went to see if there were any new emails and there was one from the police,
0:01:04 > 0:01:07warning about a young girl who would ring at the door.
0:01:07 > 0:01:12The bell rang, I went downstairs and opened the door and there she was.
0:01:17 > 0:01:22Hello and a huge thanks for all your emails. We really appreciate them.
0:01:22 > 0:01:26Rosalind Willets from Leicestershire and David Williams from Lincolnshire
0:01:26 > 0:01:28are concerned about doorstep crime.
0:01:28 > 0:01:34David believes that setting up "no cold-calling zones" is a great way to tackle it.
0:01:34 > 0:01:36I find it very reassuring to know
0:01:36 > 0:01:42that the various law enforcement agencies are gradually catching up with the crooks who plague us all.
0:01:42 > 0:01:46That's certainly true in Oxfordshire because in January 2012,
0:01:46 > 0:01:50the conviction of local dodgy traders hit the headlines.
0:01:52 > 0:01:54Take a good look at these two.
0:01:54 > 0:02:01Trevor Bateman and David Merriman were rogue builders who defrauded thousands of pounds from people
0:02:01 > 0:02:05and left a trail of damage and misery throughout the south-east.
0:02:05 > 0:02:09But their activities have finally been brought to an end
0:02:09 > 0:02:15and Martin Woodley of Oxfordshire Trading Standards is hopeful of seeing them get their comeuppance.
0:02:15 > 0:02:18It's been a long, complex investigation
0:02:18 > 0:02:21and it's taken us three years to get to this stage.
0:02:21 > 0:02:23This is the finale now
0:02:23 > 0:02:25and we'll see what sentence they get.
0:02:25 > 0:02:31This hopefully can put a closure on this and put a lot of other victims' minds at rest.
0:02:31 > 0:02:36But let's rewind to see how Bateman and Merriman targeted one victim,
0:02:36 > 0:02:3968-year-old Jane Thomas,
0:02:39 > 0:02:42who was doorstepped at her Oxfordshire home in June 2009.
0:02:42 > 0:02:46The pair operated as A&S Builders,
0:02:46 > 0:02:51not to be confused with any reputable company of a similar name.
0:02:51 > 0:02:53They said they were from A&S Builders.
0:02:53 > 0:02:56They were doing work in the district.
0:02:56 > 0:03:03I said I needed the garden clearing and tidying up and would they like to give me a quote for it?
0:03:04 > 0:03:07So he said "yes" and went off.
0:03:07 > 0:03:12A couple of days later, A&S joint boss Trevor Bateman appeared at Jane's door
0:03:12 > 0:03:16with a quote for £800 to clear her garden and repair the pathway.
0:03:16 > 0:03:19'Trevor was very plausible, VERY plausible.'
0:03:19 > 0:03:24He directed me and a friend of mine to go and look at some brickwork
0:03:24 > 0:03:30that had been done on another house nearby, which we did and we liked the look of it,
0:03:30 > 0:03:34so we thought everything was going to be all right.
0:03:34 > 0:03:41The following Monday, all these blokes arrived and started to clear the garden.
0:03:41 > 0:03:45As work was progressing nicely, Jane suggested another job for them.
0:03:45 > 0:03:51I invited them to have a look at the bathroom which also needed quite a lot of attention
0:03:51 > 0:03:54because a local plumber had left it in a bit of a mess,
0:03:54 > 0:03:58so they gave me a quote for the bathroom as well.
0:03:58 > 0:04:05Bateman quoted £2,500 to install a new bathroom which Jane agreed to.
0:04:05 > 0:04:09Throughout, there were no written quotations.
0:04:09 > 0:04:12Trevor Bateman said he needed to be paid in cash
0:04:12 > 0:04:16and that request was generally on a Friday.
0:04:16 > 0:04:20And he needed the cash to pay his workforce, he said.
0:04:21 > 0:04:26And so I had to go to the bank on a Friday and withdraw the cash.
0:04:26 > 0:04:29As well as his demands for money,
0:04:29 > 0:04:34Bateman also tried to pressurise Jane into having other jobs done as well,
0:04:34 > 0:04:39which thankfully, she refused, but things were already getting out of hand.
0:04:39 > 0:04:43The problem with it all was that lots of different people arrived
0:04:43 > 0:04:46at different times to do different things,
0:04:46 > 0:04:51and I got very confused as to who was who and what was happening.
0:04:51 > 0:04:55It's easy to see why poor Jane was feeling overwhelmed.
0:04:55 > 0:05:01Martin Woodley of Oxfordshire Trading Standards led the case against Bateman and Merriman.
0:05:01 > 0:05:05They were targeting the elderly and the vulnerable
0:05:05 > 0:05:09and most of our victims were females living alone.
0:05:09 > 0:05:11This was one of their trademarks.
0:05:11 > 0:05:18They wanted the money on a Friday to pay the boys. They wouldn't give any leeway and they put the pressure on.
0:05:18 > 0:05:24By now, this unwieldy gang of rogue builders had stripped Jane's bathroom, leaving it unusable,
0:05:24 > 0:05:26but worse was still to come.
0:05:26 > 0:05:31I realised I'd been scammed... for certain
0:05:31 > 0:05:37the day we found the toilet unplumbed in the middle of the kitchen floor.
0:05:37 > 0:05:42That is just shocking. We'll hear more about Bateman and Merriman's disastrous handiwork
0:05:42 > 0:05:46and find out the results of their court appearance a little later on.
0:05:46 > 0:05:50We love reading about your tips on tackling doorstep crime
0:05:50 > 0:05:55and you've been very keen to tell us face to face your views on the whole subject.
0:05:55 > 0:06:01The older generation were brought up to be trusting and it's difficult if somebody is pleasant to you
0:06:01 > 0:06:05to think they have an ulterior motive. We should be more cautious.
0:06:05 > 0:06:10Sometimes people feel embarrassed and ashamed about these doorstep crimes,
0:06:10 > 0:06:14but they shouldn't feel embarrassed to go and report them.
0:06:14 > 0:06:17When people come offering to tarmac the drive cheaply
0:06:17 > 0:06:21or claiming that my roof needs some work and offering to do that,
0:06:21 > 0:06:27I would tell them that I would insist on getting three quotes before commissioning anyone to do some work.
0:06:27 > 0:06:31Here's another example of doorstep crime.
0:06:31 > 0:06:37Hello, Gloria. I'm David Platt and I was one of these victims of this doorstep crime.
0:06:37 > 0:06:42I want to be on your programme, so no-one else has to go through what I've been through.
0:06:42 > 0:06:46It's been horrendous and it must stop.
0:06:46 > 0:06:52We'll take a closer look at that story later on, but first, news of a wonderful online messaging service
0:06:52 > 0:06:58that's helping police and residents share information and protect themselves against doorstep crime.
0:06:58 > 0:07:02We've been to Hertfordshire to see it in action.
0:07:02 > 0:07:04Love it or loathe it,
0:07:04 > 0:07:10there's no doubt technology can be incredibly useful, as seen in the work of Hertfordshire Police.
0:07:10 > 0:07:16The Online Watch Link, or OWL as it's known, is a website which anybody can sign up to
0:07:16 > 0:07:21and enables the police to warn residents by email, phone, fax or text
0:07:21 > 0:07:24about criminal activity before they can be targeted.
0:07:24 > 0:07:27And OWL is proving a great success
0:07:27 > 0:07:34as almost 100,000 people have joined the scheme across Hertfordshire, Staffordshire and North Wales
0:07:34 > 0:07:37since it started in 2010.
0:07:38 > 0:07:43But one person who wishes she'd signed up is 86-year-old Jolanda Wheeler.
0:07:43 > 0:07:49On a late afternoon in January 2011, she was relaxing at home in St Albans.
0:07:51 > 0:07:55There was a knock on the door and a young lady stood there.
0:07:55 > 0:07:59She was holding her hand very carefully and said,
0:07:59 > 0:08:04"I've just had an accident. I think I've broken my fingers.
0:08:04 > 0:08:09"Could I come in? Could I put them in cold water?"
0:08:10 > 0:08:14I was very sympathetic and said, "Of course, come on in."
0:08:14 > 0:08:21I'm sure lots of us would be happy to help a young person in need and caring Jolanda was no exception.
0:08:21 > 0:08:24But something didn't seem quite right.
0:08:24 > 0:08:28She said, "I think I might have broken the wrist."
0:08:28 > 0:08:34I should have seen that this wasn't broken, but I was so concerned about it.
0:08:34 > 0:08:39As she tended to her injuries, Jolanda was too preoccupied
0:08:39 > 0:08:43to take much notice of the man who was at the door with her.
0:08:43 > 0:08:46The gentleman in the back said, "Can I use your toilet?"
0:08:46 > 0:08:50I said, "It's just by the door," and off he went.
0:08:50 > 0:08:56He came back again and this man said, "Right, I'd better go back to the car
0:08:56 > 0:09:01"because Mother is waiting in there and I'll tell her what's happened." And he left.
0:09:01 > 0:09:06And after a minute, she said, "I think that will do now."
0:09:07 > 0:09:12I gave her a towel and she very carefully cleared it up and left.
0:09:12 > 0:09:15The pair had only been in the house for minutes
0:09:15 > 0:09:20and Jolanda thought nothing more of it until the following day.
0:09:20 > 0:09:22It wasn't until the morning...
0:09:23 > 0:09:26..when my handbag wasn't anywhere.
0:09:26 > 0:09:31And I thought, "Oh, I came from shopping. I left it on the chair in the kitchen."
0:09:31 > 0:09:33Sort of under the table.
0:09:34 > 0:09:40It wasn't there either and that's when the penny dropped.
0:09:40 > 0:09:44Jolanda had been the victim of a classic distraction burglary.
0:09:44 > 0:09:47The girl had diverted her with the phoney injury
0:09:47 > 0:09:52while her male accomplice had stolen Jolanda's handbag containing over £100.
0:09:52 > 0:09:57I have learnt something and that is not to be quite so trusting
0:09:57 > 0:10:01and certainly when I'm on my own in the house,
0:10:01 > 0:10:05not to ask anybody in.
0:10:05 > 0:10:09Disturbingly, it soon became clear that poor Jolanda was only one victim
0:10:09 > 0:10:14in a series of distraction burglaries across the region.
0:10:16 > 0:10:20Detective Sergeant Duncan Woodhams leads Operation Manhunt
0:10:20 > 0:10:26which is a Hertfordshire Police initiative dealing specifically with doorstep crime.
0:10:26 > 0:10:30It's fairly unusual to have a young female in distraction burglaries,
0:10:30 > 0:10:35the fact that she was claiming to have hurt her wrist on each occasion,
0:10:35 > 0:10:39the fact that she was picking on mainly female, elderly victims
0:10:39 > 0:10:45and always committing these offences in the late afternoon or early evening.
0:10:45 > 0:10:49To try to prevent these doorstepping thieves from striking again,
0:10:49 > 0:10:54Duncan and his team turned to their secret weapon - the Online Watch Link.
0:10:54 > 0:10:57It was a warning email from OWL after Jolanda's burglary
0:10:57 > 0:11:04which helped prevent 74-year-old Lyn Parkyns from becoming another victim of the doorstepping duo.
0:11:04 > 0:11:09As luck would have it, she had signed up to the scheme a matter of weeks before.
0:11:09 > 0:11:12I had just taken my husband to the station
0:11:12 > 0:11:15and when I got back, as I usually do,
0:11:15 > 0:11:19I went into the study which is just by the front door
0:11:19 > 0:11:23to see if there were any new emails, and there was one from the police,
0:11:23 > 0:11:26warning about a young girl
0:11:26 > 0:11:31who would ring at the door, say she'd hurt her wrist and could she run it under cold water,
0:11:31 > 0:11:34but on no account to let her in.
0:11:34 > 0:11:38I then went upstairs and about five minutes later, the bell rang.
0:11:38 > 0:11:42I went downstairs, opened the door and there she was.
0:11:42 > 0:11:47A youngish girl, dark hair, looked to me about 15 or 16, holding her wrist,
0:11:47 > 0:11:50saying could she run it under cold water?
0:11:50 > 0:11:54There's a bizarre coincidence, but thanks to the warning email,
0:11:54 > 0:11:56Lyn knew just what to do.
0:11:56 > 0:12:04I said something like, "We've all heard your story," or, "We know about you, goodbye," and shut the door.
0:12:04 > 0:12:11I thought perhaps it was the wrong thing to do because I'd alerted her to the fact people knew about her.
0:12:11 > 0:12:15Their confrontation with Lyn must have unsettled the pair
0:12:15 > 0:12:19because the distraction burglaries ended as quickly as they had begun.
0:12:19 > 0:12:24The victims had described the girl as being aged anything between 12 and 20,
0:12:24 > 0:12:30but police were eventually able to identify her as 22-year-old Amy Cotterell,
0:12:30 > 0:12:35a doorstepping criminal who had been arrested for similar offences in the Midlands,
0:12:35 > 0:12:39which is where Duncan and his team caught up with her early in 2010.
0:12:41 > 0:12:46Amy Cotterell was arrested by my team in Wolverhampton on the 20th of January.
0:12:46 > 0:12:51She was brought back to Hertfordshire and interviewed over a couple of days.
0:12:51 > 0:12:56She eventually admitted her part in the ten offences of distraction burglary.
0:12:56 > 0:13:00Although she refused to name her accomplice in crime,
0:13:00 > 0:13:04Amy Cotterell was charged with a series of distraction burglaries
0:13:04 > 0:13:09and in December 2011, was sentenced to four and a half years in prison.
0:13:09 > 0:13:13For Lyn Parkyns, her close shave with the dodgy doorsteppers
0:13:13 > 0:13:19has proved the value of the Online Watch system and she can continue to be forewarned.
0:13:19 > 0:13:22I think most people wouldn't let a stranger in,
0:13:22 > 0:13:26but in this case, the girl looked so young and vulnerable
0:13:26 > 0:13:30that a lot of people would take pity on her and would have let her in.
0:13:30 > 0:13:33If I hadn't had that message, I would have done.
0:13:33 > 0:13:39The OWL message received by Miss Parkyns prevented her becoming a victim to Amy Cotterell. I'm sure.
0:13:39 > 0:13:45Because of the message she received, she could contact the right people quickly and inform us
0:13:45 > 0:13:48of the doorstep crime that she was suffering.
0:13:48 > 0:13:52Still to come, we hear about the West Yorkshire businessman
0:13:52 > 0:13:55who scammed residents for almost £1 million.
0:13:55 > 0:14:01To trust that person, I was very angry with myself. I should have made further enquiries.
0:14:01 > 0:14:05That's what I should have done and that's what everybody else should do.
0:14:09 > 0:14:12At this stage, it's time to return to Oxfordshire
0:14:12 > 0:14:18to discover the fate of the rogues who made life so miserable for consumers there.
0:14:18 > 0:14:24You'll remember that in June 2009, Jane Thomas had been doorstepped at her Oxfordshire home
0:14:24 > 0:14:30by a company called A&S Builders, owned by Trevor Bateman and David Merriman.
0:14:30 > 0:14:35She had agreed to pay them a total of £3,200 to clear her garden and install a new bathroom,
0:14:35 > 0:14:42but instead, she had been left with an enormous mess and a huge problem.
0:14:42 > 0:14:48One day, I came home only to find the toilet in the middle of the kitchen floor, unplumbed in.
0:14:48 > 0:14:53And as it was the only toilet in the house, this was a huge inconvenience.
0:14:53 > 0:14:57Too true! It was only when Jane's son became involved
0:14:57 > 0:15:01that Bateman agreed to temporarily re-plumb the toilet back in,
0:15:01 > 0:15:06but by then, Jane's bathroom had been left in disarray for weeks.
0:15:06 > 0:15:10One of the cats jumped up and knocked the washbasin into the bath,
0:15:10 > 0:15:14thereby chipping the bath and breaking the pedestal.
0:15:14 > 0:15:19I had to go to the builders to get a new pedestal for the bathroom.
0:15:19 > 0:15:24But arguably, Bateman and Merriman's most disgusting tactic
0:15:24 > 0:15:27was to con their victims into paying for unnecessary labour,
0:15:27 > 0:15:33meaning that Jane was now faced with an extortionate bill of £6,800.
0:15:33 > 0:15:37That's twice what she had originally agreed.
0:15:37 > 0:15:39They go in for a low price,
0:15:39 > 0:15:43then create all this other work or suggest work
0:15:43 > 0:15:47and then keep taking money until either the money has run out
0:15:47 > 0:15:53or they cannot carry that work out any more because they haven't got the skills or the knowledge.
0:15:53 > 0:15:59The work for both the bathroom and the garden altogether took about four weeks
0:15:59 > 0:16:03and even then, it wasn't finished.
0:16:03 > 0:16:06And it was a very stressful time
0:16:06 > 0:16:12because I was worrying about the money, the fact that they weren't getting on with it
0:16:12 > 0:16:17and the fact that there were all these odd people in and out of the house all the time.
0:16:17 > 0:16:23Having reached the end of her tether, Jane rightly contacted Oxfordshire Trading Standards.
0:16:23 > 0:16:27The fightback against these rip-off merchants was about to begin.
0:16:27 > 0:16:33She actually came into the office with her daughter and she was very distressed.
0:16:33 > 0:16:37I then went to court and I managed to obtain some warrants
0:16:37 > 0:16:43and then 15 officers from Trading Standards, Oxfordshire Trading Standards,
0:16:43 > 0:16:46went over at about four o'clock in the morning
0:16:46 > 0:16:50to execute warrants at three addresses in Wiltshire.
0:16:50 > 0:16:56We were helped by Wiltshire Police and we were able to look at many more potential victims
0:16:56 > 0:17:00and that's when we started looking into other incidents.
0:17:00 > 0:17:06Trevor Bateman and David Merriman were finally arrested in December 2010
0:17:06 > 0:17:10and charged with unfair trading, money laundering and fraud,
0:17:10 > 0:17:13totalling almost £100,000.
0:17:13 > 0:17:18So let's whizz back to Oxford Crown Court in January 2012
0:17:18 > 0:17:22where Martin and his Trading Standards team are waiting to see
0:17:22 > 0:17:27if these rogue traders are going to be off the streets once and for all.
0:17:27 > 0:17:29We've just had a terrific result.
0:17:29 > 0:17:34Mr Merriman has received a three and a half years' prison sentence
0:17:34 > 0:17:36and Mr Bateman four years.
0:17:36 > 0:17:40It's a conclusion to the two and a half to three years of hard work
0:17:40 > 0:17:43put in by all those involved in Trading Standards
0:17:43 > 0:17:48and also it's a conclusion for the victims. They can put it behind them now.
0:17:48 > 0:17:51For Jane Thomas, the experience has been upsetting,
0:17:51 > 0:17:58but even a daily reminder of her run-in with Bateman and Merriman can't quite dampen her spirits.
0:17:58 > 0:18:00It's an upside-down tile in the bath.
0:18:00 > 0:18:06Whenever I sit in the bath, I look at it and I think, "I wish he hadn't done that."
0:18:06 > 0:18:11I'm left with the eternal memory of Trevor Bateman and his shoddy workmanship.
0:18:11 > 0:18:18That was a great result for Oxford Trading Standards and it must be an enormous relief to the victims.
0:18:18 > 0:18:21I've had a letter from Mike Oliver in Swansea
0:18:21 > 0:18:25who is justly proud of getting a "no cold-calling zone" set up
0:18:25 > 0:18:28in his neck of the woods of Neath Port Talbot.
0:18:28 > 0:18:35The scheme was approved in December 2011 and it's the first one of its kind in the area.
0:18:35 > 0:18:39There are at least 450 residents who will benefit from the protection,
0:18:39 > 0:18:43so keep up the good work, Mike, and thanks very much for the letter.
0:18:48 > 0:18:52Now we have an extraordinary story waiting for us in West Yorkshire
0:18:52 > 0:18:57where one doorstepping con man pocketed almost £1 million from consumers.
0:18:57 > 0:19:00Fortunately, the law caught up with him soon enough.
0:19:02 > 0:19:06The crook in question is Jack Darrell Henry.
0:19:06 > 0:19:12His unusual doorstep crime involved persuading people their homes were in the wrong council tax band.
0:19:12 > 0:19:18For a small cut, he promised to help them apply to the local councils to have their homes re-assigned,
0:19:18 > 0:19:23enabling them to claw back money that they'd otherwise have to pay in council tax.
0:19:23 > 0:19:29That's just what pensioner David Platt was hoping for when one of Henry's salesmen came knocking.
0:19:29 > 0:19:33A gentleman came to the door and asked if he could come in
0:19:33 > 0:19:36and talk to me about reducing my council tax.
0:19:36 > 0:19:40He was a smart gentleman in his early 30s, well dressed, clean.
0:19:40 > 0:19:45We sat in the lounge and talked for quite a while about different things.
0:19:45 > 0:19:53He quite simply convinced me that he could save me some money and also get me some cash repayments.
0:19:53 > 0:19:57The smooth-talking salesman said he worked for Council Tax Review
0:19:57 > 0:19:59or CTR, which was owned by Jack Henry.
0:19:59 > 0:20:04Of course, CTR should not be confused with companies of a similar name.
0:20:04 > 0:20:08The salesman claimed that David was owed a substantial rebate of £4,000,
0:20:08 > 0:20:13plus he could save at least £25 per month on his future council tax.
0:20:13 > 0:20:20I've been in business myself quite a while and thought I could tell a... I use the words "a shifty person".
0:20:20 > 0:20:22I believed this man 100%,
0:20:22 > 0:20:24the way he talked to me,
0:20:24 > 0:20:30particularly when he gave me his own mobile number, "Please contact me at any time you wish."
0:20:30 > 0:20:33That convinced me even more that it was a genuine offer.
0:20:33 > 0:20:39And for me to get £4,000 cash as a retired pensioner, it certainly makes you want to do it.
0:20:39 > 0:20:45£4,000 in cash sounds too good to be true, doesn't it? Well, you've guessed it - it was.
0:20:45 > 0:20:51The salesman promised David his claim would be sent to the valuation office agency immediately,
0:20:51 > 0:20:57but to take advantage of this tempting offer, he needed to make a payment to CTR there and then.
0:20:57 > 0:21:03The salesman asked me if I would sign the agreement document
0:21:03 > 0:21:05and would I pay £145,
0:21:05 > 0:21:09which would be refundable if the case didn't succeed
0:21:09 > 0:21:13and this case would be dealt with in between three and six months.
0:21:13 > 0:21:19I had no hesitation whatsoever in giving him a cheque to the value of £145 payable to CTR.
0:21:19 > 0:21:23Even though CTR would take up to 10% of the rebate as commission on top,
0:21:23 > 0:21:26it still seemed like a good idea.
0:21:27 > 0:21:31But sure enough, CTR weren't all they claimed to be.
0:21:31 > 0:21:35By the time his salesman had doorstepped David,
0:21:35 > 0:21:39Jack Henry was already well known to West Yorkshire Trading Standards.
0:21:39 > 0:21:43There is nothing illegal in the concept of charging people
0:21:43 > 0:21:45for doing a council tax review.
0:21:45 > 0:21:50You can do it for free by yourself, but the concept is not illegal.
0:21:50 > 0:21:55The problem with Jack Henry's business is the quality of the work undertaken.
0:21:55 > 0:22:01In fact, although CTR did put thousands of claims for council tax rebates through the system,
0:22:01 > 0:22:07most were so poorly filled out, they were rejected by the council immediately.
0:22:07 > 0:22:12But Jack Henry lied to his customers, telling them that their claims had been accepted
0:22:12 > 0:22:17and promising they would receive rebates within six to eight weeks.
0:22:17 > 0:22:24By early December 2011, almost three months after he was doorstepped by their salesman,
0:22:24 > 0:22:27David had forked out £310 in fees to CTR
0:22:27 > 0:22:32and there was still no sign of his £4,000 council tax rebate.
0:22:33 > 0:22:37As Christmas was approaching, I thought the time is up now,
0:22:37 > 0:22:42I will ring CTR in a pleasant manner to ask them what the position is with the cash, etcetera.
0:22:42 > 0:22:46I rang them and the gentleman was quite friendly and said,
0:22:46 > 0:22:50"It has been passed, but it's been held up in Halifax.
0:22:50 > 0:22:54"We need the go-ahead from them, but it should come through imminently."
0:22:54 > 0:22:59At least David managed to get through to Jack Henry's sales team. Others were not so lucky.
0:22:59 > 0:23:03Many customers chased him up, only to be fobbed off
0:23:03 > 0:23:07or given various excuses why their work was making no progress.
0:23:07 > 0:23:11Initial complaints were that they could not get through to Mr Henry,
0:23:11 > 0:23:17that the six to eight-week period had been far exceeded and they could no longer make contact with him.
0:23:17 > 0:23:23At this point, it's estimated that Jack Henry was turning over up to £900,000 a year
0:23:23 > 0:23:27in payments from his mostly elderly and vulnerable customers,
0:23:27 > 0:23:30but this con merchant's luck was about to run out.
0:23:30 > 0:23:36After logging hundreds of complaints against CTR from disgruntled customers,
0:23:36 > 0:23:39police and Trading Standards moved in.
0:23:39 > 0:23:44Jack Darrell Henry was arrested on July 12th, 2010, by the West Yorkshire Police.
0:23:44 > 0:23:49He was interviewed at Huddersfield Police Station by myself and a police officer.
0:23:49 > 0:23:53The arrest related to a complaint made by a 93-year-old victim
0:23:53 > 0:23:57who was being pursued for a further £95 by Mr Henry's sales team.
0:23:57 > 0:24:02Ironically, Mr Henry had succeeded in re-banding her property.
0:24:02 > 0:24:07After many months and repeated assurances from CTR that his claim had been accepted,
0:24:07 > 0:24:12David Platt was still waiting to receive his £4,000 rebate.
0:24:12 > 0:24:18It was only when he saw a headline about Jack Henry's arrest in his local paper that the penny dropped.
0:24:18 > 0:24:23Initially, when I read the article in The Examiner, it was a shock.
0:24:23 > 0:24:25I had believed in CTR all along.
0:24:25 > 0:24:29I'd paid my money on demand, I got a telephone call saying I was passed.
0:24:29 > 0:24:36I was really, really disappointed. I must admit that I thought I'd probably lost my money.
0:24:36 > 0:24:40But I'm going to fight all I can to see if I can get something back.
0:24:40 > 0:24:44Although poor David is still £310 out of pocket,
0:24:44 > 0:24:48the case against Jack Henry involves around 5,000 victims,
0:24:48 > 0:24:53all of whom paid fees to CTR for rebates they simply never received.
0:24:53 > 0:24:59It all adds up to a staggering doorstep con trick worth hundreds of thousands of pounds,
0:24:59 > 0:25:04but at least the rogue responsible might think twice before scamming anybody again.
0:25:05 > 0:25:12In January 2012, Jack Henry received a nine-month prison sentence, suspended for 12 months,
0:25:12 > 0:25:15plus 150 hours of unpaid community work.
0:25:15 > 0:25:19The pursuit of compensation for Henry's victims is ongoing,
0:25:19 > 0:25:22but one thing is for sure - David has learnt his lesson.
0:25:22 > 0:25:26To trust that person, I was very angry with myself.
0:25:26 > 0:25:31I should have made further enquiries, then perhaps arranged a future date to meet him again.
0:25:31 > 0:25:36That's what I should have done and that's what everybody else should do.
0:25:36 > 0:25:42If you are contacted out of the blue by a trader who offers you thousands in return for an up-front fee,
0:25:42 > 0:25:45we advise you not to do business with them.
0:25:45 > 0:25:51Don't allow them in the house. Even if they are offering a genuine service, we advise you
0:25:51 > 0:25:55to shop around and get quotes from alternative suppliers.
0:25:55 > 0:25:59If you need advice on any consumer matter, ring Consumer Direct.
0:26:00 > 0:26:03I think you'll agree - a great, great result.
0:26:03 > 0:26:09Now, before we go, enough time to read you a really positive email from Marion Lewis of Leicestershire.
0:26:09 > 0:26:14The neighbourhood watch group she set up in 2002 is now ten years old.
0:26:14 > 0:26:18In that time, they've been to see more than 2,000 households.
0:26:18 > 0:26:22Marion says they've reduced the number of distraction burglaries
0:26:22 > 0:26:26from 36 per year down to just one in the last 12 months.
0:26:26 > 0:26:31I think that is terrific news, so thanks for getting in touch, Marion. Good stuff.
0:26:31 > 0:26:35We're here to fight back against doorstep criminals
0:26:35 > 0:26:40and we'd love to hear more of your stories about how you've stopped them ripping you off.
0:26:40 > 0:26:44Find the details about how to get in touch with us at:
0:26:44 > 0:26:46Thanks for being with us today
0:26:46 > 0:26:50and clearly I hope you'll join me again next time.
0:27:12 > 0:27:16Subtitles by Subtext for Red Bee Media Ltd 2012