A conman who tricked a solicitor in order to fleece an elderly woman of her inheritance will go to jail unless he pays back every penny to his victim.

Patrick Doran was so determined to get his hands on Mary Cordingley’s £5,000 windfall he took her to the bank – and then to the Michael Ryan law firm which issued her cheque.

Posing as her son-in-law, he persuaded the solicitors to write a new cheque in the name of P Doran. He banked it and vanished with the money.

Yesterday Judge Peter Benson gave Doran, 50, until April 11 to pay Mrs Cordingley back in full.

Deferring sentence on Doran, of Howard Street, Little Horton, Bradford, the judge branded it “a wicked, mean offence”.

“If the money isn’t paid by then, you will receive an immediate custodial sentence,” he told the defendant.

Doran, who came to Bradford Crown Court in custody, pleaded guilty to fraud and possessing a bladed article.

Prosecutor Tamara Pawson said Mrs Cordingley, now 78, inherited £5,000 from a woman friend in August, 2007.

She was about to go to Bradford city centre to open a bank account to pay in the cheque when Doran knocked on her door. He said he had been working on Joyce’s house and asked if it was for sale.

When Mrs Cordingley mentioned her inheritance, he took her to the Bradford & Bingley branch in Darley Street in the city centre.

He tried to open an account to pay in the money but was refused because the cheque was not in his name. Undeterred, he went to Michael Ryan solicitors and they issued a new cheque in his name. Doran banked it, telling Mrs Cordingley she would get her money when it cleared.

Doran was later arrested but failed to answer his bail.

He was caught again in Morley Street, Bradford, by the police on July 22, 2008.

Miss Pawson said he produced a kitchen knife from his jacket pocket before he was handcuffed.

Doran told police he had given Mrs Cordingley £4,200 of her money and accused her of not telling the truth.

Miss Pawson said the pensioner was left upset. Her health deteriorated, she could not sleep and she had lost her trust in people.

Doran’s barrister, Michael Smith, said his family had pledged to help him repay all the money.

Judge Benson said £5,000 was “a hugely significant sum” to Mrs Cordingley.

“You just took the money and ran – almost literally,” he told Doran.