AN 81-YEAR-OLD widow struggled to contain her emotion as she spoke for the first time about the two conmen who tried to cheat her out of £100,000.

Joyce Hardy, of Deeds Grove, High Wycombe, said 'nasty' Noel Ward, 23, tried to 'bully' her into having work done on her roof, while the 'smarmy' Patrick Connors, 30, tried to charm her and help carry her shopping.

She told the Bucks Free Press the incident on November 4 has left her “suspicious and mistrusting”, while she is deeply saddened that Mohammed Fazal - a pedestrian who was hit by the pair's van as they fled from police - is still in hospital eight months later.

Ward and Connors were both handed jail sentences last month after Mrs Hardy gave evidence at Aylesbury Crown Court (see link below).

She is determined to warn other elderly residents not to be a victim of 'bogus builders' after the pair tried to persuade her to have work done on her roof.

They told her it was rotten and birds were flying out it, quoting prices of £5,000 and £100,000 at various stages. An independent surveyor said any work that needed doing to the house would cost about £800.

Mrs Hardy and her son Mark became suspicious and alerted the police, but saw Ward and Connors, described as Irish travellers, speed off in their white van as a police car drove up Deeds Grove.

She was soon shocked to find out the van had run over a pedestrian on Oxford Road in High Wycombe town centre. Mohammed Fazal, 59, is still recovering in hospital and needs 24-hour care.

One of Mr Fazal's sons told the judge at the sentencing: “My father's life has stopped even though he's alive, his quality of life is dead. We don't think he'll improve anymore.”

Mrs Hardy, a retired clerical worker, told the Bucks Free Press: “That's the real tragedy of all this. I'm just so sorry for him and his family – I send my deepest sympathies to them.”

She described Ward – who was jailed for a total of six-and-a-half years – as “a horrible young man” adding: “He was the nastier one of the two and started getting aggressive and pushy when I said I didn't want the work done.”

Connors is still being hunted by police after failing to attend the trial in May. He was given a jail term of four-and-a-half years in his absence.

Mrs Hardy, whose husband died in 1994, said: “He was very smarmy and did most of the talking. Lets hope they catch him – I'm sure they will.”

Though she has become “suspicious and mistrusting” of people Mrs Hardy said: “I'm all right now. I just want to warn others about letting strangers into their house.

“If you were brought up in the 1930s or 40s like me you're not prepared for things like this, but you have to be very very careful now.

“I'm much more wary than I was. The other day a lady wanted to help me with my shopping but I didn't like it and it didn't feel right. I said no thank you because I didn't want to risk anything.”

For police advice on combating rogue traders see the link below.