Clothing firms boss carried out £120k VAT fraud
ACLOTHING wholesaler forged documents to fraudulently claim almost £120,000 in VAT repayments.
Abdul Majeed, aged 42, of Bluebell Drive, Rochdale, submitted faked invoices as the company secretary of Rochdale fashion firms Majtex Limited and Majtex International Limited. An investigation by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) revealed Majeed used legitimate suppliers’ invoices as templates to create false sales and purchase documents.
He then used the fake invoices as evidence of supposed UK and overseas sales and purchases and claimed £119,624 in VAT repayments which he was not entitled to, although £14,353 was withheld.
HMRC officers raised concerns about suspected tax evasion and Majeed was then offered the opportunity to disclose any tax irregularities within 60 days, known as a Contractual Disclosure Facility.
He ignored the offer, so a criminal investigation was launched and Majeed’s VAT fraud, which took place over eight years, from April 2006 to April 2014, was uncovered.
Soon after, deregistered Majeed Majtex International Limited for VAT.
He admitted cheating the public revenue at Manchester Crown Court and was handed a two-year suspended prison sentence and ordered to carry out 150 hours of community service.
He was also ordered to pay £70,271 compensation to HMRC and £3,000 court costs.
After the trial Paul Maybury, assistant director of the Fraud Investigation Service at HMRC, said: “Majeed has finally admitted his crime and is paying for his greed.
“He had the opportunity to put his tax affairs in order and not be criminally investigated.
“But he ignored HMRC and now has a criminal conviction for tax evasion.
“If HMRC had not stopped the fraud, Majeed would have continued to steal from the public funds we all rely on. We encourage anyone with information about suspected tax fraud to report it online or contact our fraud hotline on 0800 788 887.”