A sheriff has urged prosecutors to prioritise court proceedings against a Tayside businessman accused of bullying pensioners into buying mobile homes they did not want.
Caravan park owner Cresswell Welch is accused of conning one elderly victim out of nearly £80,000.
It is alleged the 58-year-old lied about the age of second hand mobile homes he was selling and the annual cost of fees on the site.
Welch, of Seaton View, Arbroath, denies all charges.
The case called at Perth Sheriff Court on Thursday, when Sheriff Gillian Wade raised concerns about potential delays.
“Some of the witnesses in this case are in their 80s,” she said.
“This will be a big matter for them.
“And I imagine the accused will want this case to come to a conclusion one way or the other as well.”
The case was adjourned to a further hearing on August 5.
Allegations
Welch is alleged to have obtained £79,500 by fraud by inducing 74-year-old Johan Dorothy Bruce to pay that price for a fixed mobile home by pretending it was 10-months old.
The charge alleges the van was already three years old when he sold it at Seaton View on May 29, 2016.
It is alleged between September 1 and December 23, 2016, he misled John Robertson, 74, about the age and warranty of a mobile home at Marlee Loch Residential Park in Blairgowrie.
He allegedly withheld material information and falsely stated it was two years old and as a result, duped Mr Robertson into buying the vehicle he would not have bought otherwise.
Between August 31 2017 and May 31 2018, Welch is alleged to have adopted aggressive sales practices to coerce and place undue influence on Anthony Steven, 72, until he purchased a mobile home “other than of a type he wished to purchase” at Marlee Gardens.
Welch is alleged to have forced the pensioner to pay by threatening to evict him and destroy construction work which had already been carried out.
The fourth charge alleges that between December 19 2017 and June 1 2018 he engaged in misleading practices at both sites to cause James Wadman – whose age was not given –to purchase a mobile home he would not otherwise have done.
He allegedly withheld information and lied about its age.
During the same time frame, Welch is alleged to have acted in a threatening and abusive manner towards Mr Wadman and coerced him into buying a type of mobile home he did not want.
The final charge alleges that between December 19 2017 and December 1 2018 he misled Martin and Senga Burke about the age of a fixed caravan at the Arbroath site.
He is alleged to have falsely stated it was a year old and falsely stated site fees were £2,000 annually.
That charge alleges he “caused them to take a transactional decision they would not otherwise have taken and caused them to purchase a residential mobile home.”
