September 19 2016
A Lancashire gang that cleaned up more than £1.23 million of ‘dirty money’ linked to a major construction industry VAT fraud has been sentenced. Keith Wilson, Mark Whiteside, Brian Kerfoot, Bernice O’Donnell and Alan Thompson, all of Preston, as well as Michael Troubridge, of Morecambe, set up a network of sham companies to launder money for an organised criminal gang. An investigation by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) found the group registered multiple new companies and most were used as fronts to launder the proceeds of the VAT fraud. Large amounts would be paid into the accounts of each company before quickly being withdrawn.
HMRC’s investigation found the scam was linked to a fraud within the construction industry that has already seen 12 people sentenced in 2014 for setting up 23 fake companies to steal £4 million in a VAT scam, with jail terms totalling more than 16 years handed down.