Leaders has bought three agents in Worcester.

They are Town & Country, Simply Lets and Premier Places, which are merging to become Leaders.

The purchase of Premier Places, on April 13, comes after the business made headlines after a long-running police investigation which began in 2009.

The then owner Brandon Weston and the company’s book-keeper Chris Williams were subsequently charged with fraud. Both men pleaded guilty, the court being told that Weston used deposits from 203 tenants totalling £137,660.

In 2011, both men escaped jail at sentencing.

Weston, who had set up the company in 1995, was given a 12-month jail sentence suspended for two years and ordered to carry out unpaid work. Williams was given an eight-month jail sentence suspended for two years.

Leaders yesterday said that it was aware of the firm’s history when conducting due diligence.

Carol Charge, technical and compliance director for Leaders, said: “Leaders carried out extensive due-diligence before the acquisition of Premier Places.

“At that time Leaders verified files, confirmed correct deposit protection was in place for all assured shorthold tenancies and undertook a full audit on the client account, completely satisfying ourselves with respect to the business and its reputation in Worcester before making the acquisition.

“We are aware of some issues over five years ago under historic ownership which preceded the most recent owners from whom we acquired the business.

“However, since then the staff at Premier Places have complied with all legislation and we believe have gone above and beyond to offer an exemplary service to their customers and clients, as their 4.1 stars out of 5 rating on Google Reviews clearly shows.

“Leaders is a member of ARLA, The Property Ombudsman and SAFEAgent, and we therefore ensure that all of our branches, existing and newly acquired, adhere to their strict codes of conduct as well as all legislation relating to client money protection and deposit protection.”

http://www.worcesternews.co.uk/news/9269824.Businessman_Weston_avoids_jail_for_fraud/

http://www.worcesternews.co.uk/news/9372179.Disgraced_Weston_and_Williams_escape_director_ba

https://www.propertyindustryeye.com/brandon-weston-escapes-driving-ban/n/