A man who conned tax officials out of £34 million and funded a lavish lifestyle of luxury hotels and restaurants has been jailed for one of the longest sentences in British criminal fraud history. Thomas Scragg, 56, was jailed for a total of 17 years following three separate fraud convictions against HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) ~ the latest, in March 2011, for stealing millions of pounds in employee PAYE tax. The conman from Solihull, West Mids. used his business Moya Payroll which managed staff wages of construction industry companies to steal over £26m in tax over a five year period between 2002 and 2007. Other investigations revealed a further £8m of stolen PAYE tax in a 10-month period from April 2007 to February 2008.His co-defendant, Paul Phillips from Derbyshire, was jailed for nine years.The latest conviction for offences in March 2011, followed a joint investigation by West Midlands Police and HMRC.The extent of Scragg's racket has remained a secret until now as cases against his two henchmen Carl Johnson, 49, and his brother Anthony, 51, from Wolverhampton progressed through court.
PRANKSTER Dom Joly was so livid when he was slapped with a parking ticket that he took to Twitter to vent his anger – only to discover he was the victim of his own gag! The comic got a taste of his own medicine when he was tricked by a fellow joker for the first time in a decade .
Southern England, the south-west and west Wales have been warned to expect more wild weather, with heavy rain and high tides possibly leading to coastal flooding and travel disruption over the weekend .
WELCOME to the drawing room that is home to the £100K world’s greatest collection of Margaret Thatcher autographed objects .
A quiet Himalayan mountain village springs to life for a colourful Buddhist festival designed to expel evil spirits and bring happiness .
This is the moment a nimble red fox and a lumbering Alaskan brown bear were locked in a tense stand-off .
This is the amazing moment two white-tailed kites take an in-flight meal - exchanging prey at 100 foot high in mid air .
IN THE not so MISTY MOUNTAINS of Wiltshire, there lies an abandoned hobbit house .
The lighthouses of Brittany, from Brest to Le Conquet, stand tall on France’s north-western coast against stunning scenery .
VIBRANT bursts of colour fill the screen as beautiful flowers blossom in these time-lapse videos .
SEA LIFE and greenery in one shot show nature at its very best .
Staring death in the face, a little field mouse bravely confronts a hungry cat .
YOU’VE heard of the northern lights now feast your eyes on the natural wonder of the SOUTHERN lights .