Former taxman jailed over £3m fraud scheme

Imran Ajaib used his insider knowledge to pass information on various firms to other members of the conspiracy, which aimed to net more than 3m in reclaim tax.

The 27-year-old worked as an administrative assistant at Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs accounts office in Shipley for just six months from February 2006 but within weeks of starting work began accessing information which was passed on to other fraudsters.

Annabel Darlow, prosecuting, told Bradford Crown Court the conspiracy involved false claims for tax repayments with bogus addresses being submitted to Companies House and false bank accounts being set up.

False applications for tax repayments were submitted during the currency of the conspiracy which spanned a 12-month period beginning in March 2006.

Only one application was successfully processed and cashed, but the court heard that was for a total of 2m on behalf of an unsuspecting shoe company.

Ajaib, who had no previous convictions, "hijacked" correspondence sent to the tax office and it was used to successfully apply for the repayment to the shoe company.

Miss Darlow said the Revenue had been able to recover all but 290,000 of the payment.

"Various corporations were targeted and used as vehicles without their knowledge or consent for the making of false applications for tax repayments in their name," she told the court.

In August Ajaib, who now lives in Bristol, pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiracy to cheat and yesterday Recorder Neil Clark told him he had been part of a very professional and organised effort to cheat the Revenue.

At the time of the conspiracy he claimed to be under financial pressure but the judge noted he had become involved in the conspiracy very soon after obtaining employment at the tax office.

Ajaib's barrister Rick Holland pointed that it was almost the fourth anniversary since the offence was committed and said his client was a rather different man to the one who used to live in Bradford and who seemed to have kept the wrong company. Mr Holland said it was accepted by the Crown that Ajaib, who is now married with a young son, was not the top dog but he conceded that he was in an important position.

References were handed in on his behalf and Recorder Clark accepted that they spoke highly of Ajaib's work in the community.

"You were in a position of considerable trust," said Recorder Clark. "You had access to information which was confidential and which allowed you a detailed knowledge of the financial position of various companies.

"Anybody in public office, as you were, who breaches that sort of confidence has to expect that a custodial sentence must follow."