A CONMAN who took money from elderly people for mobility aids that were never delivered has been sentenced to six months in prison – after breaching a court order three times.
John Cooney, 37, of Water Lane, Radcliffe-on-Trent, first appeared in court in 2010 after trading standards officers were contacted by worried customers of his company Mobility Plus.
Many had paid deposits on equipment that they never received.
At that time, he was ordered to sign an agreement under the Enterprise Act, which set out rules that he must stick to while running his company.
But within weeks of this, Trading Standards received more complaints about the company, and Cooney and business partner Carl Mould appeared in court in January this year. Cooney, a father-of-two, admitted 36 breaches of the undertaking at that hearing but sentencing was deferred until December 2014 to give him one last chance to stay out of trouble.
He was back in court yesterday after admitting a further 49 breaches of the order since January, which involved mis-selling goods to another five customers.
He pleaded guilty to contempt of court.
After the hearing, Councillor Mick Murphy, chairman of Notts County Council's community safety committee, said: "Trading Standards and the court have given Mr Cooney every chance to comply with the law and recompense his victims.
"Unfortunately, he chose to continue to rip off vulnerable people.
"After all, people who need mobility aids are by definition some of the most vulnerable in our society and trading standards will continue to protect them by bringing offenders like Cooney before the courts."
Cooney previously formed UK Mobility with Carl Mould, 46, of River Crescent, Waterside Way, Colwick, at premises in Epperstone.
The company sold aids for the elderly, including rise and recline chairs, bath lifts and specially-adapted beds.
All their victims were aged over 65 and handed over deposits ranging from £170 to £1,100.
Many said they had paid deposits for products such as chairs, beds and mattresses that had not been delivered.
The business suddenly closed on January 6, 2011, without notifying existing customers or the owners of the premises it rented at Crifton Enterprise Centre, Epperstone.
Mould was jailed for four months in September after admitting 26 breaches of the order since the January hearing.
