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.
Kevin Silva, 52 from Indiana in the USA, has spent an estimated £65K ($100K) on Batman trinkets over the years, and even keeps his 2,500-item haul in his very own basement 'Bat Cave' .
FROM motorcycling to department store shopping these spookily faceless people are part of the Chinese-fad for wearing protective solar-visors in public .
Ever wished you could live in a house just like Barbie's? Canadian sculptor Heather Benning has created the life-size dollhouse of her dreams out a derelict building .
RACING down the slopes in her tiny ski gear, this TWO-YEAR-OLD girl has already mastered the art of skiing .
PERCHING on top of a gate, this young barn swallow waits patiently for his mum to return with dinner .
With stunning scenery and otherworldly vistas, Iceland’s rural beauty is inescapable – especially for Hollywood .
SURROUNDED by divers, a hungry green sea turtle enjoys being the centre of attention .
From vivid greens to glowing pinks, the colours of the aurora borealis fill the night sky above a snow covered Lapland .
A NINJA red squirrel cuts a dashing figure as the little fella jumps up to ten-feet between treetops in the Yorkshire Dales .