A phoney Liverpool mortgage broker who conned a house-hunter out of nearly £23,000 avoided jail.
Toxteth businessman Edward Madden, 54, told Marjorie Burt he could help her pick up a flat in Essex on the cheap, but had to pay cash directly into his bank account to prove she had a deposit.
He was found guilty of two counts of theft at Snaresbrook Crown Court, in London.
He was sentenced to 15 months in prison, suspended for two years, and ordered to pay costs of £4,500.
The court was told that Madden, of Cedar Grove, has since paid back a total of £25,242.
Source: http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/