AN Ashburton plumber who put customers’ lives at risk by posing as a qualified gas engineer has received a suspended jail sentence.

Christian Winter claimed he was registered as a Gas Safe approved workman and installed and serviced a boiler which produced potentially lethal carbon monoxide discharges.

The 35-year-old received a suspended jail sentence after a Judge told him he had flagrantly disregarded safety regulations and put lives at risk for profit.

Winter worked as a self-employed plumber for 15 years and had clients all over the South Hams and Teignbridge areas but has been out of work since this investigation.

He signed off work with a Gas Safe registration number which he had made up. The Gas Safe register is the successor to the old Corgi scheme and anyone working on gas fittings must be certified by them.

Winter, of Westabrook, Ashburton, admitted three charges of breaking gas regulations under the Health and Safety Act and was jailed for 12 months, suspended for a year.

He was also ordered to do 200 hours unpaid community work and pay £3,327.80 costs by Recorder Mr Martin Meeke, QC, at Exeter Crown Court.

He told him: ’You were a plumber by trade but masqueraded as a Gas Safe engineer. When your work was examined it was found to be faulty and considered a danger to life.

’That indicates that you were neither registered nor competent. Your culpability is very high because this was an intentional breach and you flagrantly disregarded the law.

’An improperly installed and maintained boiler is capable of leaking carbon monoxide and there have been many cases in which deaths have resulted. You were a real danger to the public by your conduct.’

Mr David Sapiecha, prosecuting, said Winter installed a boiler at the home of customer Sally Webster in Park Road, Kingskerswell, and went on to service it during the next three years after she rented the house to tenant Rebecca Dawkins.

Miss Dawkins became suspicious about his work when he failed to fix a boiler fault and a qualified engineer was called in who also found a leak in a flue which could have led to a build up of potentially fatal gases.

An investigation showed the Gas Safe registration number on Winter’s certificate was made up. Winter was not qualified and had not paid the £3,000 fees to register.

Mr Sapiecha said: ’We say he put profit before safety. There was an obvious danger which caused risk of death. He clearly knew he had falsified his registration details in the documents he provided to the consumer.’

Miss Ceylan Bayram, mitigating, said Winter has lost his business as a self-employed plumber since the investigation and has genuine remorse. He has no previous convictions and pleaded guilty at the first opportunity.