The offender was sentenced following convictions for fraud over $5,000 and theft over $5,000 arising from renovation contracts with an elderly homeowner.
The court found the offender deliberately exploited the victim’s vulnerability, grossly overcharged for unnecessary or incomplete work, and retained more than $300,000 while leaving the residence in an almost uninhabitable condition.
Applying the Kienapple principle, the theft conviction was conditionally stayed because it arose from the same factual and legal nexus as the fraud offence.
Emphasizing denunciation and deterrence in cases involving exploitation of elderly victims, the court imposed a custodial sentence of two years less one day.
A restitution order was also granted requiring repayment of $215,773 representing the victim’s financial loss attributable to the fraud.
