Crooked agent steals thousands ... and pays back just £850

A north of England letting agent who conned home owners out of thousands of pounds has been ordered to pay it back - or, to be exact, a mere £850.

The Warrington Guardian reports that Saleem Kassim invented maintenance work at some of the rental properties managed by the firm he worked for - Leaders - but he stole £16,500 he paid by landlords for the ‘repairs’.

On seven occasions between 2016 and 2018 he faked repair work which was not carried out. 

Instead Kassim, from Liverpool, paid the invoices for these repairs into his own bank account in order to pay off debts. His successor at Leaders uncovered the con.

The conman was spared jail at Liverpool Crown Court back in July after admitting fraud, instead being handed a 12-month imprisonment suspended for a year. 

Now Kassim, 36, has been made the subject of a Proceeds of Crime Act hearing at which a confiscation order for just £850 was issued. He will have 28 days to pay the money or face a week’s jail sentence. 

Kassim was also subjected to a rehabilitation activity requirement of up to 15 days and told to carry out 70 hours of unpaid work.

The newspaper quotes Leaders’ lettings managing director Emma Wells as saying: “The behaviour of this individual goes completely against the values of the company, we work hard to secure the trust of our landlords by offering expert guidance and a proactive service.

"This activity was reported as soon as we became aware of it and we took appropriate action internally. Our clients can rest assured that this was a disappointing but isolated incident, and their investments are fully protected.”

You can see the full local story here.