10:40 am, November 9, 2022
A ‘dodgy’ second-hand car salesman ‘used all the tricks of a rogue and dishonest trader’ in order to con customers into buying unroadworthy vehicles, a court has heard.
Shamus Dewaine posed as a private seller in a bid to try and avoid legislation designed to protect consumers from unlawful traders.
He then sold ‘dangerous’ and ‘unroadworthy’ vehicles to unsuspecting drivers, conning them out of thousands of pounds in the process.
Appearing at Swansea Crown Court, Recorder Christopher Felstead slammed the dealer, describing him as ‘a cheat and a fraudster’.
He also said he had ‘no doubt’ that Dewaine was a dishonest man ‘when it suited him’.
The 45-year-old admitted to three counts of fraud by false representation as well as three counts of breaching consumer protection legislation and supplying an unsafe product.
The court heard that he had advertised a total of 43 cars for sale on Facebook as well as selling others at the roadside, three were subject to the criminal charges, WalesOnline reports.
On the first occasion, Dewaine sold a Citroen Berlingo on Facebook for £995 in July, 2020.
He claimed the car belonged to his brother and had occasionally been used by his mother for her bee farm business.
However, in reality, the defendant had purchased the French motor just days before for a scrap value of £325.
His plan nearly fell apart during a test drive with the buyer when a warning light came on but Dewaine managed to blag his way out of the situation by using what he claimed was a diagnostic machine to prove that there were no issues.
He even went as far as naming a local garage which he insisted had fitted new parts including a cam belt.
The vehicle was later assessed by an independent expert who ruled it was ‘unroadworthy’.
On another occasion, Dewaine sold a Renault Clio to a learner driver in January 2021 for £900.
The court heard that he described the car as ‘very tidy’ and delivered the car at night, in an apparent bid to hide its flaws.
Prosecutor Andrew Davies told the court he then became ‘pushy’ towards the teenager until money was exchanged.
Sunrise next morning revealed that the inside of the car was rotten and the seatbelts were caked in mould.
Outraged, the buyer called Dewaine back but was told to just ‘give it a wipe and put it back on sale’
As with the Berlingo, the Clio was also later ruled to be unroadworthy and dangerous.
Finally, the dealer sold another Clio to a disabled man in April 2021, for £695. The court heard that the vehicle was later diagnosed with a ‘catalogue of defects’ including oil leaks in the engine and gearbox, brake issues, and a broken suspension coil.
The car was eventually sold for scrap for just £150.
Investigation cost £15,000
The court heard evidence from Pembrokeshire Council which spent a whopping £15,000 investigating and prosecuting Dewaine.
However, with the defendant now out of work and in receipt of benefits, it was ruled he was not in a position to repay any of those costs.
Despite that, the judge still ordered him to pay compensation to the buyers of the Berlingo and the second Clio.
The young learner driver had already received his money back after making a complaint to trading standards.
Despite a strong dressing down from the recorder, Dewaine avoided prison and was instead handed a nine month sentence, suspended for 18 months.
He was told he had avoided an immediate custodial sentence ‘by the skin of his teeth’ and warned any further offending would land him behind bars.
The father-of-six had 15 previous convictions for 27 offences including benefit fraud, theft, driving while disqualified and obtaining property by deception.
