A CON artist and father of four who defrauded more than £15,000 from seven victims faces an inevitable prison sentence, a judge has said.

Adrian Gray, 56, admitted 14 counts of fraud by false representation at Salisbury Crown Court on Friday.

Gray, of The Poplars, Fovant, will be sentenced on July 15.

Pensioner Ivor Wright lost more than £7,000 to the fraudster, including £650 for a visa for his wife, £1,000 for shares in Gray’s fencing company and £6,000 on a plot of land.

Another victim, David Hooper, lent Gray £400 for building materials and £250 to help a family member who had just been freed from jail.

He also gave him £1,650 to help him buy a car, and £50 to pay for permission to install a dropped kerb.

Judith Snowdon paid Mr Gray £110 on the understanding that he would fix her gate.

And Gray conned Daniel Compton out of £550 by promising to buy a property for him to rent. He conned Sophie Ring out of £670 to help her move house, and £420 to pay her rent while she was in hospital.

He promised Matthew Todman work on a barn conversion and offered to supply him with diesel, conning him out of £700.

And he also conned Mr Todman out of a further £1,900 by promising to buy a house in Dorset for him to rent.

Gray promised to take AnnMarie Rickett on holiday, instead defrauding her of £300.

The judge, Alastair Malcolm QC, said: “These are serious offences. You have committed similar offences on numerous occasions before.

Inevitably you can expect to go to prison.”

The offences were committed between January 2013 and March 2016.

Five of the offences were committed while Gray was on bail.

Defending, Berenice Mulvanny said Gray had four children, two of whom were “young, with some difficulties of their own”.

“He knows the inevitable outcome,” she said.

Gray was granted conditional bail. He is not to contact the victims and must sleep each night at his home address.