An Aberdeenshire farmer who lied about the cost of farm supplies in order to make fraudulent VAT claims totalling more than £657,000 has been sentenced to 27 months in prison following an HMRC investigation by a taskforce targeting VAT fraud in Scotland.

Ella Thom attempted to justify the VAT repayments she claimed by inflating the cost of machinery, fertilisers and business charges.

At Aberdeen Sheriff Court, Thom pleaded guilty to submitting fraudulent VAT repayment claims for over six years, between September 2004 and March 2011 amounting to £657,932.

Anne-Marie Gordon, HMRC assistant director of criminal investigation, said: 'Thom knew that she was breaking the law, yet chose to overlook it for the opportunity of making what she wrongly assumed would be easy money, at the expense of the UK taxpayer. She now has to pay a very high price for her criminal activities as well as repaying the money she stole.'

HMRC's Scottish VAT fraud taskforce was launched in October 2013 and is one of 57 specialist compliance campaigns set up since 2011. The department says a further 16 taskforces tackling different sectors and locations are planned for 2013-14 and up to 30 for 2014-15.