Former Redhill postman jailed for string of frauds

A FORMER postman and prominent local footballer who defrauded a string of victims has been jailed.

Trevor Hooper netted £13,000 cash from people including workmates, a former girlfriend and residents on his round.

A postman for 23 years, mainly covering Merstham, Hooper, 46, of Brooklands Way, Redhill, was jailed for 50 weeks at Guildford Crown Court on Thursday.

The defendant, who was based at Redhill sorting office in Noke Drive until he was dismissed last summer, admitted five charges of fraud.

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Rachel Davies, prosecuting, said he took his ex-partner's company credit card on 34 occasions to take £11,440 from various cashpoints over a six-month period last year

Miss Davies told the court: "He had befriended this woman via an internet dating site before moving into her Hertfordshire home.

"She worked for an internet fast-food company, and she entrusted him with the company credit card because he said he was buying materials for various handyman jobs for the firm."

Eventually Hooper confessed to the woman and promised to pay the money back but never did.

While working as a postman, he said he would do some fencing repair work for two female customers he met on his round.

After taking a total of £736 from them in advance to cover the cost of materials, he made a series of excuses to them about why he could not carry out the works, which were never done, said Miss Davies. She said police then contacted the sorting office – only to learn that Hooper had taken £320 in prize money from a World Cup sweepstake in 2010 and been sacked as a result.

He had also taken £810 from a man in Bexley for patio repair work last year which was never carried out.

In Hooper's defence, Keith Goodhand said: "Two or three years ago, he was a family man and a hard worker.

"Clearly it has all gone wrong in that time."

The defendant had suffered a divorce, mounting debts, the onset of depression and his dismissal from work, the court heard.

Mr Goodhand added: "He knows he has let everyone down.

"He will serve his sentence and put the past behind him."

Jailing Hooper, Judge Christopher Critchlow told him: "You are paying the price for dishonesty.

"Some of these offences were quite mean.

"The most serious was the breach of trust involving the person you were living with.

"I hope when you come out of prison you will have learned your lesson."