A group of film producers, accountants, financial advisors and investment bankers have been jailed for more than 36 years for trying to cheat the tax system out of £2.2m
The investigation by HMRC found that the fraud involved claiming false tax rebates linked to fabricated investments in film making partnerships.
The partnerships claimed to have spent £5.7m on the two film projects ‘Starsuckers’ and ‘Mercedes the Movie’. However, they claimed to have made substantial losses enabling them to falsely claim back around £40,000 in tax relief for every £20,000 they had invested.
Investigators discovered suspicious tax rebate claims that came from two tax avoidance schemes, set up and managed by accountant Terence Potter, 56, who was based in Monaco.
Potter provided false documents that backed up this claim.
He promoted the schemes to wealthy individuals and provided false paperwork to make them appear legitimate.
He had help from financial advisor, Neil Williams-Denton, 42, who promoted the schemes to investment bankers.
Investment bankers Phillip Jenkins, 51, James Hyde, 43, and Hamish MacLellan 43, were collectively sentenced to thirteen and a half years in prison for conspiracy to cheat the public revenue.
Two film producers Chris Walsh Atkins, 40, and Christina Slater, 37, were sentenced to a total of nine years for their role in circulating money and producing falsely inflated invoices. They were convicted of conspiracy to cheat the public revenue, theft and fraud.
Simon York, director of HMRC’s fraud investigation service said: ‘This was an audacious attempt to defraud HMRC and was motivated by the pure greed of dishonest and wealthy individuals. The majority of those involved in this fraud had no interest in the film industry, or regard for the impact of their criminality on honest taxpayers.
‘After painstaking and complex work from our investigators, and a series of long trials, HMRC has dismantled the fraudulent operation, and shown that we have the intent and capability to bring criminals to justice regardless of their resources. The long sentences handed down send a powerful message to those tempted to deceive HMRC. Nobody is beyond our reach.’
Most of the tax refunds claimed by investors were withheld and £500,000 which had been paid out initially has been recovered by HMRC.
Investigations to recover further proceeds are ongoing.
