'Career criminal' conman who preyed on elderly victims on Dispatch district doorstep is locked up

Liam Schneider, 46, has been preying on elderly and vulnerable for much of the last decade – mostly by asking to borrow small amounts of money that he has no intention of repaying.

Schneider, who has multiple convictions for theft and fraud, came to police attention again after a string of similar offences at the start of 2021.

On one occasion at a sheltered housing facility in New Basford, he pushed an 86-year-old woman to the ground after barging uninvited into her flat and making a grab for her handbag.

After taking a small amount of cash during the incident on March 9, he fled the scene.

Over the previous three months Schneider had also targeted several other elderly and vulnerable victims in local sheltered housing facilities – mostly by asking for money to pay for electricity.

After falsely promising to pay the money back, he was successful in obtaining cash on at least four occasions.

During one of these offences, he followed another 86-year-old woman into her home and pressured her into giving him money. Unsatisfied by the £20 he had been offered, he reached into her purse for even more.

Schneider, who was arrested on March 11 after a concerted police bid to track him down, admitted in his police interview to going door-to-door trying to con money out of people in a bid to fund his heroin addiction.

He denied deliberately targeting elderly and vulnerable people.

His lengthy criminal record, however, suggested otherwise.

Between 2010 and 2019 Schneider served eight different prison sentences in various parts of the country for offences including burglary, theft and fraud.

He was also caught on CCTV at the scene of two offences.

Schneider later pleaded guilty to one count of robbery and five counts of fraud in relation to the offences in Basford.

He also pleaded guilty to a further 16 fraud offences and two burglaries committed in Derbyshire.

Appearing at Nottingham Crown Court on March 25, he was jailed for 10 years and three months.

Detective Constable Tim Townsend, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: “Schneider is a callous and calculating career criminal who deliberately targets elderly and vulnerable people in their own homes.

“This kind of behaviour is utterly contemptible and I am pleased he has now been handed a very significant jail sentence.

“Schneider has had multiple chances to change his ways and knew full well what he was doing when he committed these latest offences.

Detective Inspector Kayne Rukas added: “I hope this very significant jail sentence will also serve as a reminder to other criminals who prey on vulnerable people.

"We will track them down, we will bring them to justice and we will see them sent to jail.

“I would also urge potential victims of these kinds of offences to ring the police immediately if they are suspicious of somebody who comes to their home uninvited.

“The safety and security of our elderly residents is extremely important to us and every bit of information we receive helps us to put people like Schneider away in prison.”