One of Rennie Price’s victims was 98 during what was described in court as a ‘despicable’ spree of offending in Neath
A man targeted elderly and vulnerable pensioners, including one who was aged 98, pretending he had carried out work on their properties before demanding money in what has been described as a “despicable” spree of offending. Rennie Price was branded a “conman” by a prominent Swansea Crown Court judge.
The court heard how between February and May this year, Price attended the houses of elderly people in the Neath area. It began on February 26, where he demanded £120 from his first victim, 79-year-old Maureen Hughes, after telling her he had completed work on her house without her request, claiming he spotted defects whilst working on a neighbour’s roof.
He attended the post office with her, where she withdrew the money and gave it to him. Ms Hughes reported the matter to police after she later spoke to her neighbour, and they told her they had not had any work done on their property. Don’t miss a court report by signing up to our crime newsletter here.
Prosecution barrister Georgia Donohue told the court that the second victim was Trevor Thomas, aged 85. He had been at home with his wife on May 12, when Price knocked on his door and said that he had repaired damaged tiles on his roof, charging him £250 on the spot. Mr Thomas went to Neath police station when he later discovered no work had been carried out on his home.
The third victim, a man in his seventies, had Price knock on his door, and offer to clear the guttering of his house and repair roof tiles for £120, and requested further large sums of money from him, which he refused and closed the door.
Price continued to knock, and said he would meet him at the bank to receive the money. The victim also attended Neath police station to report the matter.
On May 14, Price attempted to obtain money from 87-year-old Anne Clark. The court heard how he spotted her near a bank and pretended to know her, asking “how are you keeping”, before telling her she owed him £120 for work he had completed on her house. She told him she did not have any money, and he pointed towards the bank. She refused and Price walked away.
Gwynfor Hughes, 79, was Price’s next victim on May 20. Price had attended his home and offered to remove an old wardrobe and carry out work in his garden, warning him to stay inside as he was “using chemicals”. Mr Hughes, who handed £140 to Price, later stepped outside to find Price had left and no work had been carried out.
Two days later, Joyce Thomas, 82, was approached by Price. He told her he had seen tiles come loose on her house and advised her work had to be done urgently as rain had been forecast. He charged her £240 and urged her to attend a cash point. The court heard the matter, reported to the police, left her feeling “stressed, worried and scared” in her own home.
On May 23, Price attended the home of Susan Baker, 69, claiming he had completed roofing work for her, telling her he was “from Limerick, now living in Skewen”. She knew no work had been completed and asked for proof, to which he said he would provide an invoice and photographs.
He entered her house and asked for £220 for work he claimed to have completed. Ms Baker said she had no money but could write a cheque, which Price rejected, stating he had “completed the work as a favour” and to prevent ceiling defects.
Price left after Ms Baker’s neighbour intervened. The court was told how she had been feeling “flustered and pressured into giving money” when he attended, and that since the incident, she has “kept her doors locked and will only open the door when she knows who it is.”
The following day, on May 24, David Lewis, a man in his eighties, was also approached by Price, who told him he had asbestos dust on his roof garage. He asked Mr Lewis for £150, and he said he would only pay once the work had been completed. Price then asked for £25, but he again refused.
Dennis Hathaway, 89, was approached by Price on May 26. He called out to Mr Hathaway by his name and told him he had “fixed his roof” and requested £120. He was given £60, but no work had been completed.
Price’s oldest victim, John Pritchard-Jones, 98, was approached on the same day, May 26. He told him that he had repaired loose tiles on his roof, but Mr Pritchard-Jones could see there were no loose tiles on his property.
Price pointed toward scaffolding on the street as a sign work was allegedly being carried out in the area and asked for £120. Mr Pritchard-Jones told him it was too much, to which Price responded: “How much you got on you?” He took £40 from the pensioner and left.
Diane Dark, 77, was approached by Price on May 27. He told her he had been working on a property next door and claimed he removed moss from roofing. He offered to paint her door and requested £60 to buy paint, but then requested £100 to enable him to buy brushes.
Ms Dark later spoke to a man carrying out work at a neighbouring property and asked if he was working alone, and he said yes. She then reported the matter to the police.
A total of £2,075 was taken from eight complainants, the court heard.
Price, 53, of Cwrt Neville in Wern, Llanelli, appeared at Swansea Crown Court via Swansea prison video link for sentencing having pleaded guilty to 11 counts of fraud.
Sali Harmes, barrister, representing Price, said: “Mr Price tells me he does not wish to shy away from how serious these matters are and recognises it was selfish. It was a string of offending which was despicable.
“He wants me to pass on his apologies to the court and to the victims, and says he is ashamed by his actions. He wants to make amends and wants to pay the victims back in full.
“His offending was motivated by financial selfishness and money he needed to fund his new found drug addiction to alcohol and crack cocaine.
“It is clear that this is a case that crosses the custody threshold, with an extremely high chance of a custodial sentence.
“He is someone who needs all the help available to him.”
Sentencing Price, his honour Judge Paul Thomas said: “In 2014 you went to prison for defrauding people. It seems you have returned to your old ways.
“This year you set out on a deliberate campaign of planned dishonesty over several weeks. Your plan was to swindle elderly and vulnerable people claiming you’d done work that you clearly hadn’t done.
“Nearly all victims were in their seventies or eighties, one as old as 98.
“It was brazen, cynical and heartless.
“It’s not just about financial loss, it is the feelings of stress and pressure on people during the final years of their lives, and the embarrassment over the feeling of being conned, and their erosion of trust in people generally.
“These courts have a duty to protect people from conmen like you. There were 11 different victims.”
Price was jailed for 20 months.
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