Longford man hit with suspended sentence for van engine repairs deception

A man has received a fully suspended prison sentence for the offence of deception by inducing a man to pay €2,700 for repairs to a van when said repairs were not carried out.

Edward Stokes (46), of Auburn Park, Edgeworthstown, Co Longford, appeared before Longford Circuit Court where Judge Jonathan Dunphy heard evidence of the offence from April 1, 2021.

Detective Garda Donal McDermott, giving evidence, told Shane Geraghty BL, prosecuting, that the owner of the van had seen an ad on Done Deal for the fitting of engines, braking and repairs.

The name on the ad was Joseph Harper and, when the injured party rang the phone number associated with Mr Harper, arrangements were made to collect his Ford Transit van from a garage in Ballinamore on March 12.

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A price of €2,300 was agreed for the replacement of the van’s engine. Mr Harper turned out to be the accused, who said he was giving the injured party an engine with 30,000 miles on it.

When the injured party sought to collect the van, Mr Stokes, still under the name of Mr Harper, told him he had to replace the turbo on the van for a further €400. A total of €2,700 was handed over, with a written receipt provided on April 1.

However, the injured party was not happy while driving the vehicle, and again brought it to a garage in Ballinamore, where he was advised the engine had never been changed, and the turbo hadn’t been working.

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Gardaí inspected the vehicle and were satisfied that the engine was the same one that had been originally fitted in the vehicle. There was “no indication the engine or turbo were removed or disassembled”.

Mr Stokes was arrested on July 26, 2021, and brought in for questioning. When asked about the vehicle, he said “I don’t recall it”.

He told Gardaí he had used his mother’s maiden name to avoid discrimination as he is a member of the Travelling community.

When shown CCTV footage from the garage in Ballinamore where the van was collected, and footage from an industrial location in Longford showing the exchange of cash between him and the injured party, he denied trying to deceive anyone.

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Andrea Callan BL, on behalf of Mr Stokes, pointed out that the van “wasn’t driven into the garage, but it was driven out so some work was done on it”.

She noted there was “a receipt and a paper trail”, and said her client had quoted for a “rebuild” of the engine, not a replacement.

“It’s a plea of guilty and an acceptance of responsibility. Your mitigation is one of a genuine mistake,” said Judge Dunphy.

Ms Callan stressed that she was providing “context, not an excuse”.

She said her client is a 46-year-old father of five and grandfather of one. He is not working at present but has a great interest in horses and hopes to work in that area. She said he is “of relatively good character” and is "remorseful" for his actions.

Mr Stokes had brought €2,700 to court as compensation, which the injured party was willing to accept, but Ms Callan added that her client would need time should he be required to come up with more.

Judge Dunphy set a three year headline sentence, which he mitigated down to two years and three months and suspended in full for three years.

He ordered Mr Stokes to hand over the €2,700 and to come up with a further €2,300 within six months, with a receipt to be furnished to the court.

“If he breaches any of those terms, he will serve two years and three months in prison,” he concluded.

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