A British man who funded a luxury lifestyle in Monaco off the back of a major VAT fraud, has been jailed for four years after confessing his crimes to his innocent accountant.

William Batchelor was arrested at Luton Airport just before he was due to board a flight back to Monaco. He had learnt that HMRC was investigating fraudulent VAT repayment claims relating to his property company JCV Properties Ltd made over a period of two years.

Croydon Crown Court heard that Batchelor confessed the fraud to his accountant, who was not involved in the fraud. It involved a number of false VAT repayment claims, with the creation of bogus invoices claiming to be for the purchase of land.

Despite Batchelor telling his accountant 'the game is up', attempts by HMRC to arrange a meeting with him to discuss his tax affairs were not successful, and he booked a flight out of the UK.

At his trial, Batchelor initially pleaded not guilty, saying he had been targeted by 'mobsters' demanding cash and that this had forced him into the VAT fraud. However, these claims were rejected by the court as there was no evidence that the money fraudulently claimed from HMRC was ever paid to any third party. Batchelor subsequently pleaded guilty.

Martin Brown, assistant director, HMRC criminal investigation said: 'He used the proceeds of that crime to fund his Monaco lifestyle which included a vintage Mercedes car worth over £100,000. HMRC was determined that he should remain in the UK to face our investigation.'

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