The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has secured an Unexplained Wealth Order (UWO) from the High Court to freeze a £1.5m property owned by former wife of solicitor, Timothy Schools
The SFO is determined to recover proceeds of crime from a £100m fraud conducted by Timothy Schools, and assisted by David Kennedy, his former financial advisor. Schools was sentenced to 14 years in prison.
Ex wife Claire Schools owns the £1.5m property in the Lake District which the SFO suspects was purchased with the proceeds of the £100m fraud. The property was originally bought for £3.36m, according to the Law Society Gazette.
The UWO will force Schools to declare how she obtained the property within 28 days, as well as freezing the property to ensure that the proceeds of any sale would be secured. This is after £1m was recovered from Timothy Schools earlier this month.
After 28 days the SFO will have the power to apply to seize the property from the High Court.
UWOs were introduced in 2017, but it is the first time the SFO has implemented one.
Nick Ephgrave QPM, director of the SFO, said: ‘This is a milestone case for the SFO and follows on from last week’s successful £1m recovery to go back to the victims in this case.
‘Wherever criminal assets have been hidden or dispersed, we will progress our investigations with determination and explore new methods to recover funds for victims and the public purse.’