CAR owners in Devizes, who say they have been conned by dealer Jerry Swain, this week welcomed the fact he could be facing jail.

Swain, 68, of Maryport Street, Devizes, pleaded guilty to ten counts of fraud when he appeared before a judge at Swindon Crown Court.

He admitted conning people out of thousands of pounds by bouncing cheques and telling car owners they would receive money from the sale of a vehicle which never materialised.

Grandfather Swain, who runs a second-hand car business from Cannings Hill Garage, also deceived a relative of a Mazda owner by claiming it had been sold.

Of the ten charges, he admitted two relating to people receiving cheques, totalling more than £1,000, which he knew would not be cleared by the banks.

Six times Swain told car owners they would receive sums of money from the sale of the vehicle which never arrived. He admitted keeping £14,450 from those victims, with each losing between £400 and £4,250.

Robert Morgan-Jones, defending, said that the case clearly passed the custody threshold and asked for the case to be adjourned for a pre-sentence report.

“It may be suitable for a suspended sentence: he is a man of 68 years with no previous convictions,” he said.

Judge Tim Mousley QC adjourned the case to February 26 and released him on conditional bail until then.

He said: “You have pleaded guilty to all of these offences which, as you are aware, are so serious to merit a custodial sentence and that will be in the forefront of the mind of whichever judge sentences you.”

The case brings into the open a campaign, which has been run by frustrated car owners for several years, trying to get justice for the way they said they had been treated by Swain. In the past they accused Wiltshire Council’s trading standards department of not doing enough to stop his practices.

One person, who did not want to be identified, said: “No action was taken against him even though umpteen victims have come forward.”

Another said Swain had sold a car on behalf of her father who suffers from Alzheimer’s but said he had not received the money.

Former Wiltshire civilian police worker Mark Sayer was furious in 2013 when he found out that a charge of fraud against Swain had been dropped. But Mr Sayer and his wife Sarah now feel that justice is being done.

Sarah Sayer wrote on a blog set up by disgruntled customers: “Justice, it seems, is creeping up on him. We don’t expect any money back but its good to see things are going the way they should eventually.”

The case was brought by Wiltshire Council’s trading standards department after months of compiling a dossier against Swain.

This week Swain was still working at Cannings Hill. When contacted by the Gazette he said: “I am not well. I don’t want to comment.”