A letting agent that was forced to close his firm in New Malden has left 17 landlords out of pocket by stealing £27,000 of tenant deposits.
Chandra Patel, 34, has been jailed for ten months. He was the director of Giraffe Residential, which was closed down in December 2014.
Letting Agent Jailed for Stealing £27,000 of Tenant Deposits
It is believed that Patel used tenants’ deposits to cover his own debts.
Patel pleaded guilty to two counts of fraudulent trading on 23rd March at Kingston Crown Court.
He has now been sentenced to ten months in prison and is banned from being a company director for seven years. He will also have to pay a victim surcharge, but this figure will be determined at a later date.
Sentencing Patel, Judge Timothy Lamb said: “He traded well until 2014, when things took a turn for the worse. The defendant decided to help himself to the monies, which he held in trust.
“I take into account the defendant’s family circumstances, I take into account that he is of previous good character. However, the defendant became part of a system of retail letting which was created in order to instil trust and confidence. He was plainly not fit to play a part in the system. He abused his position.”1
Patel has a wife and is a father of three, with his youngest child just five months old.
It is reported that landlords were left to reimburse their tenants from their own pockets after the money was taken, having only been told in a letter in December 2015 that Giraffe Residential would be dissolved and that no payments could be made.
The police and Trading Standards then launched an investigation into the firm, after receiving numerous complaints.
If you need help finding a reputable letting agent, follow this advice: https://www.justlandlords.co.uk/news/choosing-right-letting-agent-property/
1 http://www.thisislocallondon.co.uk/news/14449908.New_Malden_letting_agent_jailed_for_ten_months_after_using___27_000_of_landlords__money_to_cover_debts/