Four men have been charged after a roof scam that stole thousands from an elderly man

A group of tradies have allegedly left an elderly man with a leaky roof and $100,000 in debt after a major roof scam.

Four men have been charged over a roof scam that police say conned an 81-year-old man out of thousands of dollars.

Victoria Police have charged four people over alleged dodgy building work across Melbourne, totalling more than $640,000.

Police allege one victim, whose roof was left in a worse condition after the repair job, was an 81-year-old man in Kew, who handed over $99,000 to one of the tradies.

It is claimed the elderly man is now being forced to use pots and pans inside the house due to a number of leaks.

Other victims included three sisters who police say were tricked out of hundreds of thousands of dollars and a Toorak woman who paid the alleged offenders over $30,000 for a dodgy downpipe replacement.

After receiving reports from the community that the conmen were offering residential roof repairs at top prices, only to leave the homes in states of disrepair, police hunted down the men who they allege were attempting to make a hasty escape.

After executing a search warrant at a Thomastown property on Thursday, with hopes of speaking to a 21-year-old Irish national, detectives were alerted by the Australian Border Force that the male had allegedly tried to board a flight to Ireland with his brother’s passport.

Police claim the elderly man is now using pots and pans throughout the house to deal with multiple leaks from the failed job.. Picture John Gass

Police arrested the alleged crook at Melbourne Airport before charging him with obtaining property by deception.

He is expected to face the Melbourne Magistrate’ Court on September 5.

Police also arrested a further three males in connection to over $540,000 worth of alleged roof scams since the beginning of April on Sunday, including a 23-year-old male, 21-year-old male and 20-year-old female.

The three British nationals were also stopped by border force officials as they tried to board an international flight from Melbourne airport.

The two men have been charged with deception offences and dealing with the proceeds of crime and are due to face court in December.

Police will allege the group pretended to be a legitimate, licensed roofing company, convincing over 20 suspected victims that their roofs were in need of major repairs, with some allegedly told their roofs were at risk of collapse.

First direct flight from New Zealand to Hobart, Australian Border Force Superintendent, Nicholas Walker. Picture: Chris Kidd

ABF Superintendent Nicholas Walker said officers target travelling conmen who seek to exploit vulnerable people, warning that his team were to identify and disrupt the criminal activities through Operation ‘Suddenblaze.’

“These were deliberate attempts to slip out of the country undetected and the decisive action of the ABF officers who stopped them should serve as a warning to anyone else looking to do the same,” he warned.

Senior Constable Lachlan Balazs from the Boroondara Crime Investigation Unit said the impact of scams was beyond the immediate financial damage caused.

“Sadly, it is often some of the more vulnerable or elderly members of our society who are most impacted – for many the emotional distress and loss of confidence and trust in others is just as damaging as the financial fallout,” he said.

“There is a possibility that further members of the community have been affected by similar activity and we are urging anyone who suspects they may have fallen victim to illegitimate building work of this nature to come forward.”

Anyone with information about these matters or suspected fraudulent activity is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report online at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au