Antohny Maragh
A CONVEYANCER from Harrow has been sentenced to over three years in prison after he appeared at the Old Bailey on Friday 13 November 2015.
Anthony Maragh, 57, who lived on Shaftesbury Avenue in South Harrow was charged with misleading his clients and committing fraud against HM Revenue and Customs, for almost £352,500 in stamp duty land tax.
He pleaded guilty to charges of Cheating the Public Revenue on 26 October 2015. Mr. Maragh was found to have lied on paperwork to undervalue his clients’ properties. This meant the amount of tax owed was reduced, he then changed the full amount and kept the difference.
Martin Brown, Assistant Director, Fraud Investigation Service, HMRC said:
“As a conveyancer, Maragh knew only too well that he was breaking the law and what the consequences of his actions would be. He abused the trust of his clients, stealing money that had been paid by them in good faith to meet their tax liabilities, to line his own pockets. Maragh thought that his scheme would go undetected, but he was wrong and is now behind bars with his reputation and career in tatters.”
Between 2008 and 2013, he declared less of the stamp duty land tax due on 43 property transactions, transferring £297,000 directly from the solicitor’s company accounts into his own bank account. He also spent a further £55,000 directly from the Client Account on collectable antique Chinese gold bonds.
On sentencing Her Honour Judge Poulet said: “This was repeated offending and an abuse of position and trust with a large number of victims exposed to risk.”
Confiscation proceedings to recover the proceeds of crime are underway.
“Anyone with information on suspected tax fraud should contact the Customs Hotline on 0800 59 5000.”