Building contractor jailed for 12 months for fraud

A Chesterfield building contractor who ran up £100,000 of debts by ordering equipment he could not pay for has been jailed for a year.

Christopher Hallatt, 35, of Brimington, ran Oakmanor Estates, which traded as a building contractor and supplier of building materials until it was wound up in June 2001.

Inquires by the official receiver revealed that, during the brief life of the company, tens of thousands of pounds worth of goods, including farm gates, farm machinery and a quad bike, were ordered on credit and not paid for.

Derby Crown Court heard that Hallatt managed to open credit accounts after supplying trade references, which contained false information.

Hallatt, who was also disqualified from acting as a director for eight years, had claimed that the goods were sold on to a man who failed to pay for them, but he was unable to provide the buyer's address or telephone number.

Sentencing Hallatt, His Honour Judge Benson said: "The evidence is positively overwhelming. I don't believe you had any honest intention when you set up this business. Virtually from the outset it was dishonest."

Confiscation proceedings against Hallatt won't begin until a financial investigation has taken place.