A serial fraudster is back in prison after conning more victims out of thousands of pounds.
David Aves was jailed in 2021 after selling tractors, diggers and machinery online but failing to deliver the goods. He used multiple emails, bank accounts and different aliases to con 10 victims out of a total of £34,821.
The 64-year-old was released from prison in August 2022 and soon went on to reoffend.
Nottingham Crown Court heard he used the same tactics to con seven further victims between December 2022 and April 2023 – amounting to losses in excess of £15,000.
He targeted his victims via online selling platforms such as Facebook Marketplace and Gumtree having falsely advertised tractors and other miscellaneous items.
Aves, of Ragdale Road, Bulwell, was arrested after Nottinghamshire Police’s Fraud Investigation unit launched an investigation into the string of reports.
He went on to admit seven counts of fraud by false representation and was jailed for three years after appearing at Nottingham Crown Court on 30 June 2023.
In addition to the prison term, Aves was made subject of a Serious Crime Prevention Order requiring him to notify Nottinghamshire Police of any changes to his name or address upon his release.
He will be limited to having only one mobile phone, one bank account and one email address – and will be prohibited from selling any goods online himself or via a third party.
The order will come into effect upon his release from custody. Any breach of the conditions can be punished by a maximum prison sentence of five years.
Following the sentencing, Detective Constable Mark Holmes, of the Fraud Investigation unit, said: “It is abundantly clear that David Aves is inherently dishonest, unwilling to change his criminal ways and does not care about the impact he has on his victims.
“He has shown not the slightest bit of remorse for his actions, and he deserves to be back behind bars.
“I hope this case reassures the public that fraud is taken extremely seriously by Nottinghamshire Police.
“We will continue to work hard to protect the residents of Nottinghamshire and across the United Kingdom from fraud, because they deserve not to have their hard-earned money taken away from them under false pretences.
“I would encourage anyone who may have had a similar experience to come forward and talk to us.”
A spokesperson for Gumtree said:
“We do not tolerate the use of our platform by bad actors and are pleased to see this individual has been brought to justice.
“We work closely with law enforcement to help keep our community safe, and encourage anyone who has any suspicions or concerns about a user to report it to us immediately via our helpdesk so our dedicated safety team can investigate and take action.”
