TWO brothers and two other men involved in a £23,000 credit card scam have been jailed.
Andrew Fredson, 23, of Beaconsfield Road, Weston Point, Runcorn, his brother Ian Fredson, 29, of Bramble Way, Beechwood, Runcorn, together with James Mc-Gill, 27, of Ludlow Road, Blacon near Chester, were each jailed for 15 months.
Philip Jones, 31, of Upper Northgate Street in Chester, received 14 months.
All admitted a charge of conspiracy to obtain property by deception after the credit card details of innocent members of the public were used to obtain furniture to the value of more than £23,000.
Judge John Rogers QC at Mold Crown Court told them that those who carried out credit card frauds would face substantial terms of imprisonment.
Five others who admitted handling stolen goods after furniture purchased as part of the scam was delivered to their homes, escaped custody.
Judge Rogers remanded them in the cells for about 15 minutes and told them the appropriate sentences were three months each.
But Kerian George, 24, of Hoylake Close, Murdishaw, Runcorn; Victoria Williams of Westminster Road, Hoole; Cheryl Rogers, 21, of Lime Grove, Runcorn, and Paul Jones, 26, of Caithness Court, Ellesmere Street, Runcorn, were instead ordered to carry out 100 hours unpaid work under a community punishment order.
Pregnant Layla Ashfield, 25, of St Chad's Road, Blacon, was ordered to carry out 80 hours. All five must pay £500 costs.
The case centred on the ordering of quantities of furniture from Cape County Furniture using false credit card details.
Credit card details of unsuspecting customers were copied at the PowerHouse electrical superstore at Speke at the end of 2002 and the beginning of 2003.
The details were later used to order pine furniture, mainly through the shop in Forgate Street, Chester.
A total of ten fraudulent transactions were put through in a two month period and furniture delivered to various addresses in the Chester and Runcorn area.
The dishonest enterprise was launched by the Fredson brothers, who had worked for PowerHouse at different locations.
They used details of unsuspecting customers to make telephone orders to the store with Philip Jones and McGill.
Meirion Lewis-Jones, prosecuting, explained police investigating the scam found there had been telephone contact between the four main participants.
The remaining defendants admitted handling stolen goods and it was the prosecution case that while they were less involved, they played an important role.
