A fraudster stole £1.3m of taxpayers cash and spent thousands on expensive trips, house renovations and Lego sets.
Lee Hickinbottom, 49, worked with his former partner, Tabatha Knott, 34, to fraudulently submit VAT repayment claims to HMRC between 2014 and 2017. The 49-year-old submitted most of the claims through his Serenity Community Transport business and provided false invoices.
The pair spent stolen cash on luxury cars and dream holidays to Disneyland, Paris and New York. They paid £120,000 in cash to buy their home in Dudley and a further £127,000 on home improvements.
READ MORE: Suspects named after woman raped in city centre
The fraudster bought £20,000 of shares in a confectionery company, spent £4,220 supporting Everton Football Club and treated himself to more than £1,500 worth of Lego.
Home improvements included £22,741 on a high end kitchen, which featured a £3,000 Italian granite work surface, and more than £13,000 on a deluxe hot tub that had to be installed with a crane. Hickinbottom also admitted benefit fraud totalling £28,000.
Nick Stone, Assistant Director, Fraud Investigation Service, HMRC, said: "Lee Hickinbottom and his former partner used stolen taxpayers’ cash to fund a lavish lifestyle that included hot tubs, holidays and home improvements they could not legitimately afford. The majority of businesses and individuals pay the tax that is due, but we will relentlessly pursue the determined minority who refuse to play by the rules.
"Tax fraud is not a victimless crime, it robs our vital public services of much-needed funds."
In a failed attempt to hide his criminality Hickinbottom moved cash between numerous personal bank accounts he had set up in his own name. Other attempts included transferring £346,512 to family and friends, sending £76,908 to Knott.
His banking records proved that he spent more than £250,000 on a fleet of flash cars, including £83,157 on a Jaguar F pace, £57,820 on two Jaguar XFs and £62,089 on a Land Rover Defender. Other lifestyle purchases included £18,847 spent on iTunes, £15,925 on Apple products, more than £1,000 on trips to Alton Towers and £4,220 spent supporting Everton Football Club, including £970 on a pair of season tickets for him and Knott.
Hickinbottom also splashed out more than £1,500 on Lego and treated himself to build kits for The Avengers, Batman and Tower Bridge in London. HMRC officers uncovered the fraud when the claims were checked.
During a hearing at Birmingham Crown Court, in December 2020, Hickinbottom pleaded guilty to dishonestly claiming £28,000 of Job Seekers Allowance and Employment Support Allowance between July 2013 and October 2016.
The pair were found guilty of VAT fraud on March 25, following a trial at Birmingham Crown Court. Knott was also convicted of money laundering offences.
Lee Hickinbottom has been remanded into custody ahead of sentencing, which is scheduled for May 20 at Birmingham Crown Court.
Anamarie Coomansingh of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said: "Taxpayers’ money, which should have been spent on vital public services such as the NHS, education and social care was instead used to fund the unearned and extravagant lifestyle these defendants enjoyed.
"The CPS will be inviting the court to put in place measures to prevent Lee Hickinbottom, a career criminal, from committing similar offences in the future. We will also be pursuing confiscation proceedings against all three defendants, to strip them of any money from their criminal activity."
Confiscation proceedings are underway to recover the stolen money.
