Latest news with #taxfraud
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Daily Mail
Notorious crime family member 'helped finance £20million tax fraud', court hears
A member of one of Britain's most notorious crime families has been accused of helping finance a £20million tax fraud. Tommy Adams, 67, became notorious for his role in controlling the Clerkenwell Syndicate alongside his brothers Terry, 70, and Patrick, 69. The gang operated through extortion, drug dealing and money laundering and was linked to at least 25 murders. It has now been revealed Tommy Adams was also allegedly involved in an international tax fraud by company directors and accountants. A trial at Southwark Crown Court heard there had been a meeting between white collar fraudsters at a hotel in Manchester in September 2013 - which HM Revenue & Customs investigators bugged. It was there that one of the fraudsters discussed having a four-hour conversation with Adams in London as other co-conspirators became increasingly nervous at upsetting the gangster. The trial heard Adams had allegedly been demanding £450,000 he was owed as part of the operation which made £20.8million in less than three years in total. Twenty ring members were convicted of money laundering or conspiracy to cheat the public revenue by inducing or facilitating the submission of false VAT returns between 2011 and 2014 in four trials that concluded on Monday last week. One fraud gang member - William Lindfield - was previously embroiled in a blackmail case featuring Paul Stretford, the agent for then-England footballer Wayne Rooney. Stretford and Rooney are pictured here together As part of a separate operation, Adams was convicted of money laundering in 2017 after undercover police set up listening devices in Andrews Restaurant in Holborn, central London. He was caught laundering nearly £250,000 from 'criminal activity' during which time he used runners to move cash from Manchester to London between 2012 and 2014. Adams was previously cleared of laundering some of the £26million of gold bullion stolen in the 1983 Brink's Mat raid - and he was not prosecuted over his alleged role. Financing for the £20million tax fraud operation in which Adams stands accused of being involved was provided by Warren Bartlett, 51, who invested £350,000. His company, Bartel Networks, was used to process £6.5million of the evaded VAT on £32million of orders. Bartlett, who lives in a £1.4million home registered in the name of his girlfriend in Ongar, Essex, recruited other businessmen to invest in the fraud, also using the discredited former police officer, Jerry Young, to produce a fake report for HMRC. Speaking at the trial, Judge Dafna Spiro said: 'The conspiracy was complex and highly sophisticated, involving numerous individuals, companies, strands and layers: some in plain sight and others hidden beneath a multitude of veils.' She explained Bartlett had been actively involved in recruiting others willing to invest up to $1million (£750,000), The Times reports. The judge added: 'The "investors" were effectively "priming the pump" to get the fraud running and to keep it turning over, and the returns on their investment would come from the stolen VAT.' Fraudsters used networks involving companies around the world including the UK, the US, the Czech Republic, Spain, Cyprus, Canada, Vietnam, Hong Kong and the Seychelles. They centred their operations around a company called Winnington Networks Ltd, based in Crewe, Cheshire. It submitted 18 VAT returns, in which more than £20million owed to HMRC was not paid. The fraud was carried out through dishonestly offsetting VAT paid on fake purchases of 'voice over internet protocol' technology against tax the company would otherwise have paid on electrical and metal dealing. Masterminds behind the operation were John Fenton, 66, and Neil Pursell, 60, the owners and directors of Winnington. Both have been jailed for nine years. The fraud was openly discussed at secret meetings in hotels where conspirators told of how they could just 'invent the numbers' to falsely offset their output VAT claims. One fraud gang member - William Lindfield - was previously embroiled in a blackmail case featuring Tommy Adams, Paul Stretford - the agent for then-England footballer Wayne Rooney - and Kenny Dalglish, the former Scotland and former Liverpool player and manager. Stretford attended a meeting with associates of the rival agent to discuss Rooney's contracts, Warrington crown court was told in 2005. Adams, who had recently finished a seven-and-a-half-year prison sentence for drug smuggling was present at meetings at the Novotel near Euston, central London, and Le Meridien Hotel at Heathrow Airport in November 2002. Lindfield has claimed Adams was invited by Dalglish, director of football operations at Stretford's Proactive Sports Management agency.
Yahoo
15-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Sussex Commissioner William Hayden indicted for falsely claiming veteran's tax exemption
The Stolen Valor accusations against Sussex County Commissioner William Hayden have resulted in an indictment for tax fraud for the embattled politician. The state Attorney General's Office announced the move on July 15, saying Hayden had filed a tax return in which he claimed a veteran's exemption to which he was not entitled. The fraudulent filing in 2020 saved Hayden approximately $382 in taxes, the office said. 'Our tax system relies on everyone filing a true and accurate tax return,' Attorney General Matthew Platkin said in a statement. 'Fraudulently claiming an exemption reserved for military veterans is something we will not tolerate.' Asked about the indictment, Hayden responded to the New Jersey Herald via text on Tuesday: "lol." He did not elaborate. Messages seeking comment from county Commissioner's Director Chris Carney and county Administrator Ron Tappan weren't immediately returned. Hayden, one of five members of the all-Republican county board, has faced calls to resign ever since accusations surfaced that he falsely claimed in his 2022 campaign to be a wounded veteran who served in the Navy SEALs. In some retellings, he allegedly claimed to have been injured in action against a drug cartel in Africa. The Branchville resident has denied any wrongdoing but has found himself at odds with the rest of the party. The Sussex County Republican Party mounted a recall effort against Hayden but dropped the effort after failing to secure enough signatures. Hayden did not seek the the GOP nomination for re-election this year, meaning his tenure as commissioner will end in January, barring a write-in campaign. The 58-year-old is charged with one third-degree count of filing a fraudulent tax return. The charge carries a potential sentence of three to five years in prison and a fine of up to $15,000. According to the AG's Office, Hayden assisted his wife in preparing the couple's state income tax return for the year ending Dec. 31, 2019. Hayden falsely checked a box indicating he was a veteran, according to Tuesday's statement. "Hayden is not, in fact, a veteran," the AG's Office said. As a result, he received a $6,000 exemption, resulting in the avoidance of about $382 in taxes, Platkin's office said. More: Sussex GOP drops recall effort against commissioner accused of faking military record In 2023, a former donor to Hayden's campaign filed a complaint with the New Jersey State Police, alleging the commissioner had violated the state's Stolen Valor Act, which makes it illegal to benefit financially from false claims of a military record. Separately, U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer, a Democrat whose district includes most of Sussex County, wrote to the state Attorney General that year asking for an investigation into whether Hayden violated New Jersey tax laws by claiming a veteran's exemption. This article originally appeared on Sussex County NJ Commissioner indicted for tax fraud
Fox News
15-07-2025
- Fox News
California tax expert admits role in illegal alien's multimillion-dollar fraud scheme
A California tax preparer pleaded guilty Monday to helping an illegal immigrant file fraudulent federal income tax returns that claimed $25 million in refunds, the Justice Department said. Victor Cruz, 40, of Bakersfield, helped Miguel Martinez, a Mexican national who was in the United States illegally, carry out the scheme from November 2019 through June 2023, prosecutors said. Martinez allegedly used stolen identities to create fake businesses and report phony wage and withholding information for the businesses to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). He then allegedly submitted hundreds of income tax returns using the stolen identities while claiming that they worked for the fake businesses and were owed tax refunds based on the phony information. Cruz prepared and filed more than 500 of the fraudulent tax returns, authorities said. In exchange, Cruz received thousands of dollars in fees from Martinez in exchange for his services. The IRS actually paid out $2.3 million of the $25 million in refunds that were claimed. Martinez has pleaded guilty for his role in the scheme and was sentenced to six years in prison. Cruz is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 17, 2025. He faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Reuters
10-07-2025
- Reuters
Romania arrests 13 in phishing scam targeting British tax office
LONDON, July 10 (Reuters) - Thirteen people have been arrested in Romania after phishing attacks against Britain's tax office HMRC, in which authorities suspect stolen data was used to fraudulently obtain millions of pounds of tax payments, HMRC said on Thursday. His Majesty's Revenue & Customs, or HMRC, said its criminal investigators had joined more than 100 Romanian police officers to arrest the people in the southern counties of Ilfov, Giurgiu and Calarasi. Police also seized cash and luxury cars during the raids against the individuals aged between 23 and 53, and arrested on suspicion of computer fraud, money laundering and illegal access to a computer system. A 14th person, a 38-year-old man, was arrested in Preston, northwest England, earlier on Thursday, HMRC said. The raids follow HMRC's revelation last month that a criminal gang had stolen 47 million pounds ($63.7 million) by using phishing tactics to access more than 100,000 customer accounts and falsely claiming payments from the government. The arrests are part of a number of HMRC investigations into phishing incidents, in which individuals are targeted with emails that seem legitimate, prompting them to unwittingly disclose passwords or credit card information. HMRC had said last month the incident was an attempt to take money from the tax office, and not customers, although the authority had written to about 100,000 affected people. Criminal gangs are suspected of having used stolen data to submit fraudulent tax repayment claims, including on income tax, value added tax and child benefit payments, the tax office said. "We have already acted to protect customers after identifying attempts to access a very small minority of tax accounts," Simon Grunwell, operational lead in HMRC's Fraud Investigation Service, said. HMRC also said two other men had been arrested in Bucharest in November on suspicion of cybercrime and fraud. ($1 = 0.7374 pounds)
BBC News
10-07-2025
- BBC News
Armed police raid gang in Romania behind HMRC tax scam
Romanian police have targeted a gang suspected of being behind a complex scam in which stolen data was used to fraudulently claim millions in tax repayments from HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), police have people were detained during armed raids around Bucharest, and luxury cars and piles of cash were seized. A fourteenth man was arrested in to HMRC, scammers gained access to the personal data of British taxpayers through a sophisticated phishing operation, which was used to make bogus claims for tax said "millions" was believed to have been stolen without specifying an amount, while Romanian police said over £1m had been taken. A joint operation between HMRC and Romanian police saw male and female suspects, aged between 23 and 53, arrested during the armed were held on suspicion of computer fraud, money laundering and illegal access to a computer system.A 38-year-old man was arrested in Preston on Thursday. His electronic devices were seized and he was questioned by HMRC footage published by Romanian authorities on Thursday, armed police officers were seen searching a large property, where jewellery and large quantities of cash were found.A joint investigation team - composed of Romanian prosecutors, HMRC and the Crown Prosecution Service - was established earlier this year. HMRC said the organised gang had used stolen data to submit fraudulent claims for PAYE, child benefit and VAT is unclear how many people had their information stolen, but HMRC said it had contacted "around 100,000" customers to inform them they had detected attempts to access their police said scammers accessed the Government Gateway accounts of over 1000 UK taxpayers, and then laundered the stolen scammers tricked people into disclosing their security information using various methods, and HMRC stressed that its systems had not been subject to a cyber-attack. Phishing scams involving HMRC in common: in 2022, the National Cyber Security Centre found it was the government body third most likely to be impersonated by criminals trying to obtain information.
