However, a police investigation showed at least some of the money was transferred into his Sportsbet account, that had $60,000 deposited into it from January, 2017.

Andrew Trevor Hill, 43, of Leura Road in Orange, was sentenced to jail in Orange Local Court for five charges of dishonestly obtaining financial advantage and he could be released on parole on September 10, 2020.

While in the witness box, Hill said he was trading as Central 2 West Fencing, not Dubbo's Central West Fencing, an unrelated registered company.

Hill, who had previously worked as a fencer, said he was paid 60 per cent deposits by the five victims.

According to police on one occasion Hill was paid $7212 for work to be done at Pullabooka but instead of starting work on August 14, he said he was involved in a car crash and on another date he said his 17-year-old daughter was in intensive care.

Police said he didn't have 17-year-old daughter and the photo of a bruised man he sent regarding the car crash wasn't him.

He was also paid thousands of dollars in deposits for work that was not undertaken in Bathurst, Cowra and Oberon.

While in court he said in July or August 2017 two bikie gang members took him to a racecourse in Orange and bashed him regarding a $100,000 debt that he paid in installments.

However magistrate Elizabeth Ellis said statements he made in court contrasted with information presented by a psychiatrist.

Ms Ellis sentenced Hill to jail sentences that had an overall term of 22 months and 22 days and a non-parole period of 17 months and one day.

Magistrate Elizabeth Ellis said because Hill was previously in witness protection she would recommend he be considered for protective custody but she would not issue a non-publication order.