A ROGUE dealer on eBay, whose business was based in Herefordshire, has been jailed for fraudulent trading.

David Hammond, whose Kington-based company specialised in selling television and audio equipment, was jailed for eight months after defrauding users of the popular internet auction site.

Judge David Matthews said Hammond, who pleaded guilty, had abused the trust of his customers.

He added that his actions also had "a knock-on effect for internet trading, which is now an important part of the economy".

Hammond, whose company Trade Enterprises was set up in Church Street in Kington before it moved to the Webton Business Park in Kingstone, retained £8,812 belonging to 23 customers who had not received their orders.

Michael Conry, prosecuting, said Hammond bought stock from liquidated companies and advertised it on eBay, sometimes without having equipment to supply.

He had been banned from buying or selling on eBay but recruited a customer to act as his agent while on bail for previous offences.

"He refused to speak to customers and encouraged his secretary to fob customers off," Mr Conry said. "He buried his head in the sand and adopted a cavalier approach."

Hammond, who now lives in Lancaster, committed the offences in late 2002 and by February 2003, he was arrested at his girlfriend's flat.

Simon Rippon, defending, said Hammond accepted blame and expressed his genuine remorse.

"In the last four years he has tried to turn his life around and has achieved that to a large degree," he said. "He has made a genuine offer of compensation which is perhaps the best his customers can hope for."

No offences had taken place since and Hammond had settled into a job where he was valued by his employer, he added.

As well as the custodial sentence, Hammond was banned from being a company director for six years.