A COWBOY builder from Selby who conned nearly £55,000 out of customers then became aggressive has been told he deserved every day of his jail term.

Top judges heard Darryl Glynn, 45, put his victims in a “Catch 22” situation where he started work then demanded more money in order to complete it.

Glynn, of Carr Street, Selby, was jailed in February for four-and-a-half years after admitting six charges of deception and 15 of fraud.

He yesterday launched a bid to challenge his sentence at London’s Criminal Appeal Court, but judges dismissed the appeal.

Mr Justice Cranston, sitting with Mr Justice Sweeney, told the court Glynn asked his victims for large sums up front then left work unfinished, in some cases causing damage which cost thousands.

Between April 2006 and January 2008, Glynn was paid £54,990 by seven customers who contracted him to carry out work at their homes. He tried to extort a further £23,750 from the victims, which he said he needed to complete the work, then became abusive when they refused to pay.

The court heard he was running three separate building companies from Mayfair Industrial Estate, Selby, and had a “Trustmark” logo on his van, indicating he was an approved contractor, when he was not.

Two of the worst scams involved customers whose homes each needed nearly £35,000 of repairs after Glynn caused damage.

Pensioner Peter Craven paid more than £17,000 for a new roof and window, after Glynn insisted five times that he needed more money.

But he did not carry out the works and water damage caused by his actions cost £35,000 in repairs. Lawyers acting for Glynn argued his sentence was too long, but judges said his “intimidating behaviour” and the further losses suffered by victims were “aggravating features”.