Following a report in today's Daily Mail on a family run VAT fraud and money laundering case - R v Isaac and others - here is the full statement from the CPS.
Andrew Biker, Senior Prosecution Lawyer in the Crown Prosecution Service’s Central Fraud Group, said:
“This trial demonstrates that tax fraud and money laundering are serious criminal offences which can and will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. 16 separate counts of tax fraud and money laundering were pursued against Isaac William, his wife and their four daughters in March 2010. Isaac William pleaded guilty in May 2011. His wife, Venus, and three daughters were found guilty by a jury on 13 October 2011 while Flavia Srimurugadas was acquitted. We will now pursue a confiscation order to reimburse the honest and hardworking members of the public who are the ultimate victims of this crime.
“For over a decade, Isaac William defrauded the public purse with the knowledge and assistance of his wife and family. Between 1998 and 2008, William declared sales of £1,015,999 to the Inland Revenue. Actual sales were shown to total £6,251,368.43, a discrepancy which was plainly deliberate and dishonest.
“The proceeds of this sustained dishonesty were laundered through a series of bank accounts both here and abroad. Not only did he exploit the public purse, he also exploited his employees, many of whom were illegal foreign nationals. He failed to pay them the national minimum wage and provided cramped accommodation in caravans and huts, where some slept on the floor.
“The Crown’s case was that Isaac Williams deliberately used a significant number of employees who he knew, by virtue of their illegal status and employment, would remain tight lipped about their earnings, allowing him to maximise the profits of his dishonesty."
