Sarju Popat from London, was jailed for five-and-a-half years for fraudulently claiming back millions of pounds of tax on car sales between 2009 and 2011 after an investigation by HMRC.

At the beginning of September, Popat was ordered to repay £2m within three months at St Albans Crown Court or serve additional jail time, after which he would still owe the money. HMRC found he used his criminal cash to buy properties in London’s Cricklewood, Hatch End and Muswell Hill.

Nicol Sheppard, acting assistant director, fraud investigation service, HMRC, said: ‘Popat is being stripped of everything his crimes bought him. We left no stone unturned in picking apart his finances and identifying his assets.’

The fraud involved Popat instructing Manoj Vyas, of London, and his brother Paresh Vyas, of Hertfordshire, to supply a particular make and model of car.

The brothers would sell the luxury second-hand car to Popat and charge VAT but not pay the full amount to HMRC.

The VAT fraud allowed Popat to export the car at below market value to an associate in Malaysia.

All three men were convicted of cheating the public revenue after a six-week trial in 2015. Manoj Vyas was jailed for four years while Paresh Vyas was sentenced to five years in prison.

In June this year, Manoj Vyas was ordered to repay £91,584. His brother Paresh was ordered to repay a nominal sum of £1 due to a lack of assets but HMRC can apply for a further confiscation if he comes into assets in the future.

Report by Pat Sweet