A WARRANT has been issued for the arrest of a man convicted of assisting a conman labourer, who fleeced an elderly householder of thousands of pounds.

Jonathan Keogh paid a cheque for £3,800 into his account at a bank in Peterlee, last July.

The cheque was given to him by James Dolan, who, in turn, received it from an 85-year-old woman for "repairs" he claimed to have carried out to the roof of her home in Chester-le-Street.

Days earlier, the woman made a £4,700 cash payment to Dolan for the initial work, but claimed further repairs had been necessary, and so she wrote him the cheque for the extra £3,800.

Durham Crown Court was told only minimal repairs were carried out, and nothing close to the value of the amount requested by Dolan.

The court heard a vigilant bank clerk’s concerns over the cheque payment led to the transaction being stopped, leaving the overall loss to the victim remaining at the initial £4,700.

Appearing at a hearing in January, 26-year-old Dolan, of Greenacres Stables, Haswell, east Durham, admitted fraud, on the basis his gain was solely the initial £4,700.

Keogh, 28, of Station Road, Easington Colliery, denied acquiring or possessing criminal property, relating to the cheque.

Although he admitted paying it into the bank, he said he believed it was legitimately received.

But he was found guilty following a three-day trial in February.

Sentencing was adjourned to allow probation reports to be prepared on both.

Granting Keogh bail after the trial, Recorder Taryn Turner warned him it was, “almost inevitable” he would be jailed on his return.

But, when he failed to appear for sentence, the Recorder imposed a bench warrant for Keogh’s arrest.

She further adjourned sentence on Dolan, who was present at court.

He was bailed for a further 28 days but was told he would be sentenced after that if Keogh is not, by then, apprehended.