A sheriff has warned a north-east gardener who admitted swindling almost £85,000 from his customers that he may go to jail.
George Knowles appeared in Aberdeen Sheriff Court yesterday, having previously admitted 23 charges of fraud while operating as Gorgeous Gardens.
In total, the 32-year-old conned 25 people of amounts from around a few hundred pounds to as much as £12,000, with the total coming to £84,810.
The offences took place between August 1 2016, and March 29, 2017.
Yesterday in court, Knowles’ defence solicitor Gregor Kelly said his client is far from living a “life of luxury”, and currently he and his partner and child rely on benefits to get by, living in a caravan at Parkneuk in Banff.
Fiscal depute Alison Reid told the court Knowles had told his customers, in locations all throughout the north-east including Aberdeen and Fraserburgh, that he would undertake and complete contracts for work in their gardens.
But before he started the work, he told customers he would require a deposit, to spend on materials as well as to help move the customers “up the queue”.
However, none of the deposits were returned when requested, and none of the work was completed.
Mr Kelly said the Gorgeous Gardens business which his client operated grew too quickly, and got to the point where Knowles “was unable to cover everything.”
He said: “A few cracks grew in the business, and that snowballed into an avalanche, which destroyed the business.”
The defence solicitor said the 32-year-old accepts responsibility and sincerely regrets his action, but added there is “no realistic prospect” of Knowles paying back the swindled cash “at this stage”.
However, he said Knowles is “working on an app” that he “hopes will bear fruit” and allow him to possibly repay those he defrauded in the future.
Mr Knowles told Sheriff Andrew Miller that Knowles’ partner has a serious illness, and appealed against a sentence of time in prison.
Sheriff Miller postponed sentencing until December, in order to find out more about the potential consequences of time behind bars for Knowles’ family.
“Having regard to the seriousness of these offences, the court must consider custody as one of the most prominent of the options,” he said.
“However, I must take full account of your personal circumstances.
“I am not prepared to exclude a custodial sentence, but in my view a criminal justice social work report must be sought to inform the court of the services and accommodation available for your partner and child”
