'Prolific' Chesterfield conman Wayne Hardy admits new fraud offences

Wayne Hardy, of Orchard Close, Barlborough, appeared at Derby Crown Court last week.

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The 39-year-old admitted two counts of committing fraud between February 17 and April 11 this year by pretending to be the landlord of a property at Orchard Close, Barlborough, with the intention of causing loss to two men, or exposing them to a risk of loss.

Hardy is due to be sentenced on October 18.

Last year, Hardy was handed a suspended prison sentence by Chesterfield magistrates after he was convicted of fraud.

At the time, prosecutor Mike Treharne described him as a 'prolific and professional conman'.

Hardy committed that offence after leaving prison where he served time for a 'sophisticated' fraud which saw him pocket the wages of five made-up workers.

According to this 2015 report by Wales Online, Hardy used the names of dead people from a local newspaper to create the aliases of the bogus employees.