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An estate agent who stole a deposit he dishonestly demanded from a client to reserve a property and later threatened his boss has avoided going to prison.
Danny Wood, 47, told Michael Dove he needed to pay £750 when he put his house on the market, and ushered him outside before he handed over the cash.
Weeks later, when no offers had been made, Dove called the office to take it off the market and get his money back – but was told Wood had left the company, was currently in Australia, and no deposit should ever have been taken.
On his return Wood, of Mill Street, Falmer, was charged with fraud and sending a threat, which he admitted at his first court hearing in March.
On Friday, Brighton Magistrates Court heard the house keys had also disappeared, and what Dove thought were frequent viewings in the autumn of 2023 had not actually taken place.
Wood’s boss, managing director of Cooper Adams estate agents, Shaun Adams, paid Dove back – and was himself subjected to a barrage of abuse from Wood, who said he was owed money by the company.
Prosecuting, Benjamin Parkinson said: “Mr Adams emailed Wood several times. One email Wood sent back was deemed threatening.
“It said, ‘Shaun, you are lucky I’m here and not there because I would be down there putting your head through a wall.’
“He claimed Mr Adams had caused irreversible damage to his career and he had papers ready to sue him.”
Wood returned from Australia and was arrested in Peacehaven in March 2024, under the name Danny Callaghan.
The court was read a victim impact statement from Dove, who said: “When I attended the office and found that my house keys were missing and it also seemed that Danny Wood had been visiting my house despite no viewings being booked, I became really concerned.
“I had the locks changed, which Shaun Adams paid for.
“My wife became worried about staying in the house alone since we knew the keys were missing. A year on and I’m still uneasy about the whole event. It’s left me and my wife feeling vulnerable.”
He said he and his wife had intended to use the proceeds of the house sale to spend more time with their family.
Defending, Teresa Mulrooney said: “When he left the company, before any of this happened, he was owed wages which is part of a completely separate ongoing dispute.
“It was all at a time in the context of a very horrible marital breakdown. Not only did he lose his wife, but for a time he wasn’t able to see his daughter.
“He has now recovered his mental health and he has contact with his daughter. He is in full time employment as an estate agent working for MyHaus.
“He’s very sorry about what happened. He felt his employer should pay the money back because his employed owed him.”
The court heard Wood has one previous conviction for dishonesty, when he carried out someone else’s community service.
On Friday, chair of the bench Harry Callaghan gave Wood a 12 month community order, with the requirement he carry out 200 hours of unpaid work.
He was also fined £346 and ordered to pay a court surcharge of £114, court costs of £85 and compensation to Mr Adams of £750.
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