Fisheries boss jailed over £500,000 fake VAT receipt fraud

John Fleming, owner of Anstruther-based ICS Fisheries Ltd, carried out a scam that saw him “completely fabricate” invoices from a haulage company – allowing him to reclaim VAT over the course of six years on expenses his business had never actually incurred.

Official sources revealed that the entrepreneur, whose fraud spanned the period between May 2007 and July 2013, was caught out when an HMRC VAT inspector spotted differences between the invoices he claimed to have paid to haulage firm G and J Wilson and the invoices issued by the company.

Following interviews carried out by HMRC inspectors and representatives of G and J Wilson it emerged that the amount of cash Fleming claimed he was paying them was in fact far more than they received from any of their customers.

“The business owned by the accused is involved in the sale of fish, which is zero-rated for VAT. As a result, the accused is lawfully entitled to claim back any VAT incurred by him in the expenses involved in the sale of this fish,” pointed out Fiscal depute Eilidh Robertson at Dundee Sheriff Court.

Official documents have revealed that all invoices showed exorbitant levels of haulage costs being claimed by him against his alleged purchase of huge quantities of fish.

Mr Flemming’s computer was also later analysed which revealed these false invoices had in fact been created by him before he had submitted them on to his accountants and induced them to make the false claim on his behalf.

Fleming’s lawyer told the court that he had managed to pay back the cash in full by selling property he owned - but a sheriff said the scam was too serious for him to avoid jail.

Defence solicitor David Bell said: “It appears the haulage company were not charging VAT and he was assuming it was included and was claiming it back. He then realised they were not adding VAT and he spotted the loophole and then exploited it over a lengthy period.”