Roofer on the fiddle faces court

‘‘He was . . . taking on jobs and using the money to cover debts.’’ Defence lawyer Nathan Bourke

The bankrupt owner of a roofing business has admitted taking thousands of dollars for promised work and then not delivering – saying it was a means to pay off other debt.

Late last year, Peter Walmsley, a roofer by trade, offered his services to a man who needed to re-roof his New Plymouth home.

According to a police summary of facts, Walmsley told the victim he was licensed to remove asbestos, which he was not, and measured up the roof.

He provided a quote of $3586.31 to the victim, and said the money would go towards building material costs.

Walmsley told the man the materials had been ordered and he would start the job in a few days.

But the bank account number Walmsley, 36, provided for the money to be deposited into was not his own.

The money instead went into an account of an associate to whom Walmsley owed money.

He never commenced the roofing work, and the victim began to ask questions.

Walmsley made up a number of excuses, including that he was too busy, or that the roofing suppliers had delayed the delivery.

Several times he told the victim he would refund the money, but didn’t.

In February, Walmsley was contacted by a man for whom he had previously built a shed. He now wanted Walmsley to build him a sleepout, and the pair agreed on a job cost of $3000.

The victim transferred a $1500 deposit into Walmsley’s account to pay for the building. However, Walmsley used the man’s money to pay a $1400 bond on a house he had agreed to rent.

Despite there having been no work started on the building, Walmsley continued to provide the victim with updates on the ‘‘progress of the sleepout’’.

After several months of no evidence of the building as promised, the victim demanded a refund.

Walmsley agreed to return the $1500, but has not paid back the victim.

On Thursday, Walmsley appeared before Judge Chris Sygrove at New Plymouth District Court, where he pleaded guilty to two charges of obtaining by deception (over $1000).

Defence lawyer Nathan Bourke said his client had owned a roofing company for a number of years but was bankrupted after finding himself in financial strife.

‘‘He was trying to effectively work his way out of it, and was taking on jobs and using the money to cover debts,’’ Bourke said. ‘‘What’s let him down is not being upfront with people.’’

Walmsley had since gained parttime employment as a roofer and was keen to repay his victims, Bourke said.

He said his client planned to make instalments to both victims at $50 per week.

Police prosecutor Lewis Sutton suggested that a restorative justice conference might be appropriate, and asked that in the meantime, Walmsley did not contact either victim.

Judge Sygrove remanded Walmsley until October 25 to assess the repayments before making a sentencing decision.