A CROOKED door-to-door salesman who targeted elderly people and made them pay over the odds for clothing has walked free from court.

Hardeep Singh, 47, was said to have used his "charm and persuasiveness" to get the vulnerable pensioners to part with their money.

One of his victims had early onset dementia, and he convinced another not to tell anybody about his regular visits to his home.

Two of his targets lived in County Durham – in Howden-le-Wear, and Quebec, near Langley Park– and a third was from West Yorkshire.

In total, Singh took around £12,000 from them, usually by getting the men to sign cheques on which he then filled in the amount.

Teesside Crown Court heard that the father-of-four has a conviction from ten years ago for preying on elderly people in Scotland.

On those occasions, he visited homes to sell clothing, and once the householders were distracted he stole money from them.

The court heard that Singh, from Middlesbrough, did not have a licence to be a door-to-salesman, and made as much as £60,000 illegally.

He will have to repay that amount in the next three months or face 12 months in jail, the judge, Recorder Eric Elliott, QC, told him.

Defence barrister Stephen Bailey said Singh would sell three or four cars to raise the money, and all the victims would be repaid.

Mr Bailey said Singh had sold clothes door-to-door all his adult life, and should have had a licence from the late-2000s but did not.

He said there were dozens of people spoken to by the police during their investigation, but just four were found to have been overcharged.

"It is very important I reiterate the wording strewn throughout the statements, that he was not aggressive and not threatening."

The judge interjected and said "because he was skilled at being a charmer", and later added: "He was a persuasive salesman."

Mr Recorder Elliott told Singh: "On the face of it, you targeted vulnerable people in advanced years who were susceptible to your charm.

"But you completely overstepped the mark and took advantage of their vulnerability, and you knew full well you were taking such advantage."

Singh, of Clarence Road, Nunthorpe, admitted three charges of engaging in aggressive commercial practices, and one of converting criminal property – the £60,000 through his bank account between November 2011 and December 2014.

He was given a 21-month prison sentence, which was suspended for two years, with the Proceeds of Crime Act confiscation order.