A man has been jailed for fraud offences after he fleeced potential property buyers out of nearly £16,000.
Jaspal Singh Juttla, 64, of Mallard Way, Northwood, was sentenced at Isleworth Crown Court on Thursday, May 25, to three years’ imprisonment for four counts of fraud by false representation and one count of carrying on a regulated activity when not authorised to do so.
The offences occurred between May 2019 and January 2021. He pleaded guilty to the offences at an earlier hearing on August 16, 2022, at Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court.
The offences relate to four victims, where property buyers were conned into handing over approximately £15,790.
Financial investigators from the Met’s Economic Crime team believe that there are other victims who have been scammed and are yet to come forward.
DC Anita Sharma, financial investigator in the Central Specialist Crime Unit, said: “Jaspal Singh Juttla has exploited people in his own community, using their hard-earned money to fund his lifestyle.
“We are grateful to those victims who have been brave enough to come forward in this case, but there may be other people conned by Juttla who have not spoken to police.
“I urge anyone who suspects they may be a victim of Juttla to come forward and report it by calling Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or contacting them online.”
Juttla claimed to be a mortgage adviser and offered to assist victims with property purchases. He would meet his clients – who were predominantly Indian and some spoke little to no English – at various locations in London, including Southall and Hayes. Some victims were targeted at open house viewings.
He often promised victims to fill out their mortgage applications, arrange a survey for them and put them in touch with a solicitor who would assist with a house purchase. Once the victims paid the fee requested by Juttla, he would ask for more money to cover other services that he had made up. None of these services were carried out and all arrangements failed to surface for the property buyers.
On occasions, victims contacted him to ask what was going on, but Juttla would make up excuses in an attempt to put the victims at ease.
In some instances, Juttla did provide victims with a refund by bank transfer, but it was never the full amount of the payments he had originally received.
Juttla came to the attention of police in January 2021, after Action Fraud received a crime report from one of his victims.
Following a thorough investigation, Juttla was charged on July 20, 2022.
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