A Watson Lake man is going to federal prison for scamming friends and community members out of more than $10,000.

Michael Gagnon already had a lengthy criminal record when he appeared in Yukon Territorial Court last month to plead guilty to four fresh fraud charges.

Judge Heino Lilles outlined the details of each offence before handing down a two-year sentence to the 46-year-old man.

In the first case against him, Gagnon admitted he took advantage of Werner Schneeberger, an elderly man who emigrated to Canada after having survived the Holocaust.

Schneeberger considered Gagnon a friend, so when the younger man offered to sell him a trailer for $800, plus a $100 moving fee, the senior citizen paid him cash up front.

Gagnon never delivered the trailer.

Schneeberger asked about it on numerous occasions, and Gagnon had an excuse every time.

Finally, Gagnon gave Schneeberger specific instructions about where to find the trailer in Teslin, but in fact, there was no trailer to be found.

Schneeberger never got his $900 back.

His next victims were Christine Semple and Fred Smith, the elderly couple who run the grocery store in Liard.

Gagnon, who once again was considered a friend, offered to help them by picking up a large order of groceries for the store.

They gave him $9,728.26 to pay for the goods, and he was gone.

Gagnon never paid for nor picked up the groceries and the store owners lost an additional $800 worth of perishable foods while they waited for the delivery.

A couple of months later, he was at it again, this time stealing from Raymond Laukkanen, a Watson Lake minister.

Laukkanen gave Gagnon his credit card to make some purchases on his behalf in Whitehorse.

Instead, Gagnon withdrew $2,000 cash and spent $200 on hotels and meals.

Then, he took the credit card to Sandor's clothing store, where he bought more than $1,000 worth of clothes for his wife and kids.

The store's owner, Sandor Elek, described how Gagnon conned him as well.

"He said that he was being paid very well in the mines and that he always spent money in my store. He asked me for a deal because he was spending so much money and I agreed to no tax.

"I even helped him to his truck with the bags of goods. I feel conned and used and angry.”

Although it is somewhat unclear from court records, it appears Elek took the loss on the clothes, as opposed to Laukkanen having to pay for them.

In his reasons for sentencing, Lilles said Gagnon "launches into a con almost instinctively without thinking.

"In fairness to him, I will repeat what he told me, and that is that when it comes to providing for his family, and if he does not have the money, he resorts to conning other people from their money.”

In entering his guilty pleas, Gagnon also agreed to a two-year sentence, and in fact asked to be sent to the pen, as opposed to the Whitehorse jail.

"Mr. Gagnon advised the court he would prefer a penitentiary sentence,” Lilles said. "He indicated that he has experienced violence in the Whitehorse Correctional Centre.”

The judge also noted there might be more programs available for Gagnon down south, as most of the rehabilitation available at the territorial jail is based on drug and alcohol abuse, which is not an issue for Gagnon.

With seven months' cedit for time served before sentencing, Lilles gave Gagnon a total of two years plus a day.