CPS News Brief

Men jailed for rail network corruption

Four men have been jailed today (21 July) for their parts in an operation to make and receive corrupt payments in order to win contracts as part of the Crossrail project. Alandale Rail Ltd, part of the Alandale Group, was also convicted of corruption by the jury and was fined £25,000.

Kevin McKee and John Zayya of Alandale Rail Ltd made corrupt payments and promised rewards to Innocent Obiekwe so they could secure the contract to supply safety critical staff as part of the Crossrail Project.

In return Obiekwe, a senior manager at CoLOR (Costain and Laing O’Rourke), nick-named by the co-conspirators as ‘our man in Havana’, provided confidential information during the tender process. 

After Alandale Rail won the Farringdon contract by corruption, McKee, Zayya and Obiekwe defrauded CoLOR by claiming for so-called ‘ghost worker’ shifts (non-existent shifts). The proceeds of this fraud was shared amongst them, with the lion’s share going to Obiekwe.

When this practice was uncovered Zayya continued to send money to Obiekwe by using William Waring. Zayya skimmed from the operatives’ rates of pay and used Waring and his company, Qualitas, to pay the cash to Obiekwe.

Their operation came to light after McKee told CoLOR and Transport for London of their dishonest practices, sparking an investigation. 

Jane Mitchell from the CPS said:

“McKee, Zayya and Obiekwe cheated their way to a significant contract and their level of ongoing dishonesty was uncovered only when one of their own came forward.

“The defendants could not hide from the overwhelming evidence put forward by the British Transport Police and CPS and all pleaded guilty, apart from the company that was found guilty unanimously by the jury.”

Notes to editors:

• Jane Mitchell is a Prosecutor for the CPS Specialist Fraud Division.

• Kevin McKee pleaded guilty in September 2016. He was sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment and disqualified from being a director for eight years.

• Innocent Obiekwe pleaded guilty to corruption. He was sentenced to two years in prison and disqualified from being a director for eight years.

• John Zayya pleaded guilty to corruption. He was sentenced to two years in prison and disqualified from being a director for eight years.

• William Waring pleaded guilty at trial to corruption and money laundering. He was sentenced to two years in prison and disqualified from being a director for eight years.

• Alandale Rail Ltd was found guilty of corruption and was fined £25,000.

Man who beat a child to death for losing a trainer is guilty of murder

A man who beat his girlfriend’s five-year-old son to death for losing a trainer has been found guilty of murder.

Marvyn Iheanacho, 39, [01/06/1978] from Hounslow, was convicted of murdering Alex Malcolm today (21 July) at Woolwich Crown Court after a trial.

Alex suffered fatal head and stomach injuries after being attacked in Mountsfield Park, Hither Green, on the evening of 20 November 2016.  

He was taken home by Iheanacho and then to hospital but died two days later after an unsuccessful brain operation.

 

Rob Davis, of the CPS said:

“Only Marvyn Iheanacho knows how Alex was fatally wounded, but it is certain his anger boiled over at some point that day.

'The prosecution case was that a witness heard Iheanacho swearing at a child over a shoe that had been lost in the nearby park. He was heard repeatedly and violently punching a gate.

"Later in the park another witness saw Alex lying prone on a bench. CCTV showed Iheanacho carrying Alex’s body to a cab office.

"His actions that day tragically ended a young boy’s life, and deprived a mother of her son.

"His efforts to cover up what really happened, first to Alex’s mother by claiming Alex had simply fainted and hit his head, then by lying and repeatedly changing his story to police, show his greatest concern was for himself.

"Our thoughts go to Alex’s mother and family and we hope today’s conviction brings them some sense of justice."

 --Ends--

 Notes to editors:

• Rob Davis is district crown prosecutor, CPS London Homicide team.

• Iheanacho will be sentenced on 25 July.

   

Rogue builder jailed for tricking homeowners out of thousands of pounds

A rogue builder who tricked homeowners out of hundreds of thousands of pounds has today (20^th July) been jailed for fraud. 

Dennis Pickerden, 46, ran a number of building companies in north-east Lincolnshire.  He developed a sophisticated scam to convince his victims to part with over a quarter of a million pounds in total.

Pickerden approached potential customers by cold-calling or visiting their homes.  Homeowners were provided with references, portfolios of work and even DVDs to convince them he was reliable and trustworthy.  Then extremely low quotes were given so they entered into a contract.  

Pickerden undertook a variety of projects including extensions, loft conversions and paving driveways. Work would get underway, but before long problems would arise, progress would slow, and clients would be asked to make further payments.  Eventually he would ensure that there was a major disagreement and walk off the job leaving work unfinished and often in a dangerous state.

Many victims lost their life savings and their homes. Several were so distressed by their experiences they have been left with long-term health issues including depression and stress. 

Pickerden pleaded guilty to fraudulent trading at an earlier hearing, and was today sentenced to six years and nine months in prison at Sheffield Crown Court.

 

Arslan Khan of the CPS said:

“Dennis Pickerden started building projects with no intention of ever finishing them. The work his companies undertook was shoddy and often dangerous.  He repeated the same fraud over and over again, deliberately abusing homeowners’ trust.

“His victims were left out of pocket.  Some have lost their homes and others have serious health conditions that will need long-term treatment.

“Pickerden’s offending was carefully planned and so extensive that prosecutors were able to show that it amounted to serious fraud.  I hope today’s sentence will provide some sense of justice to those whose lives he affected.”

 

--ENDS—

Notes to editors

• Arslan Khan is a Specialist Prosecutor in the CPS Specialist Fraud Division
• Denis Pickerden pleaded guilty to one count of fraudulent trading and was sentenced to six years and nine months at Sheffield Crown Court.   He has been banned from being a company director for nine years and a proceeds of crime order was lodged.

Triathlete convicted after disability benefit fraud

A man who claimed thousands of pounds in disability benefits despite climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, winning a triathlon and competing at the Phoenix Winter Games, has been convicted of fraud on Wednesday (19 July).

Mark Lloyd, 33, from Pontypridd, claimed £6,551.80 in Personal Independence Payments (PIP) from October 2014 to February 2016 due to what he said were severe restrictions to his mobility and ability to care for himself after suffering a back injury and PTSD in the army.

Lloyd had denied one count of dishonestly failing to disclose information to make a gain for himself but was convicted following a trial at Cardiff Magistrates’ Court.

The court heard how Lloyd told benefits assessors that he could not bend or stretch, needed walking aids and suffered pain when walking short distances. However he was found to have overstated these needs and during the 18-month period of claiming benefits, he had climbed Mount Kilimanjaro over five days and walked for between eight and 12 hours a day. He also took part in the World Powerboat Championships in Malta, and competed in a triathlon. 

During the period, in July 2016, Lloyd also completed a further claim form in which he stated that his mobility and care needs had increased.

Laura Walters from the CPS said:

“Mark Lloyd flouted the system to claim thousands of pounds of disability benefits, all the while taking part in tough physical challenges.

“Lloyd vastly overstated his care needs in order to claim the cash but he could not hide from the overwhelming evidence put forward by the prosecution, including photos of his participation in a climb of Mount Kilimanjaro and his participation in a triathlon.”

Lloyd will be sentenced on 3rd August.

--Ends--     

• Laura Walters is a prosecutor in the Specialist Fraud Division.

Finance director jailed for part in £40 million tax avoidance scam

A company finance controller who deliberately falsified the accounts to help her company avoid £40 million in tax has been jailed for 3.5 years on Friday (14 July).

Louise Mbadugha, 59, an accountant, worked with company boss Livio Mazzarello, 57, in the Italian Wine Company which imported wines from Italy to the UK.

They were supposed to notify HMRC of each of their consignments but only a fraction of their imports were declared. Instead the company was selling thousands of bottles of wine under the counter and doctoring their accounting records.

The real accounts were kept on a server in Italy and delivery drivers were given two notes – one with the accurate quantity of their shipment and one with fake figures to give to HMRC. 

Mbadugha and Mazzarello denied fraudulent evasion of excise duty, fraudulent evasion of VAT and money laundering at the Central Criminal Court. Both were convicted after a trial in May during which Mazzarello absconded. He was earlier sentenced to 14 years in prison in his absence and a European arrest warrant is being obtained for him.

Frank Ferguson from the CPS said:

“Mbadugha and Mazzarello were behind this complex fraud for a number of years and went to great lengths to hide it. 

“Their failure to pay was not a mistake but a complicated operation to deceive and cheat in order to profit. As a result, they kept £40 million which should have been paid to HMRC and the public purse. 

“The evidence put forward by the prosecution demonstrated the individual role played by each defendant and resulted in the guilty verdicts returned by the jury.”

--Ends--   

Notes:

• Frank Ferguson is Deputy Head of the Specialist Fraud Division