Tax fraud and identity theft

Tax fraud takes many forms, as shown by a recent HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) prosecution concerning identity theft and Income Tax repayments.

The case involved four members of a Southampton-based organised crime gang, who stole more than 3,000 identities in an attempt to defraud at least £2 million of Income Tax repayments.

The four men, all Eastern Europeans who live in Southampton and London, played different roles in the fraud by submitting false Self Assessment tax repayment claims using stolen and hijacked identities.

According to HMRC, the gang stole the identities of people who answered their classified adverts offering the possibility of work, and also created identities based on contact details found in other classified notices. Those whose identities were hijacked were mainly Polish people living in the UK, often London-based builders and construction workers looking for work or advertising their business services. The gang’s fake adverts appeared in a UK-based magazine aimed at Eastern Europeans.

After an identity was chosen, the gang would fly friends and acquaintances from Lithuania into the UK to open bank accounts and create taxpayer identities in hijacked names. When their job was done these identity mules were allowed to return home.

The gang attempted to claim at least £2 million from HMRC, but over £1.3 million was withheld when officers checking repayment claims became suspicious.

Besik Zveiba and Kardo Anderson were found guilty by jury at Southampton Crown Court on 2nd July 2013 of conspiracy to cheat the revenue. On 26th April 2013 Ruslanas Bobrovas pleaded guilty to conspiracy to cheat the revenue. Lyubomyr Sytaiylo pleaded guilty in March 2013 to the conspiracy.

The four men received jail sentences totalling 22 years and six months.

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