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.
BRAIDED, sculpted and beaded, these are the eye-catching hairstyles worn by the tribal women of Angola .
SAILING peacefully across a river in the early morning light, a fisherman in China keeps a 1000 year old tradition alive .
OFFERING a glimpse into the past, a mash-up of old and new photographs show how the world’s biggest cities have changed .
FLAUNTING its new accessory, a fashionable green dumpy tree frog poses for the camera while wearing a SNAIL as a hat .
From vivid greens to glowing pinks, the colours of the aurora borealis fill the night sky above a snow covered Lapland .
WITH SNOW COVERING the ground around them, these two polar bears play fight .
A HEIGHT-addicted airline pilot has taken pictures of the Dubai from 1,300-feet .
These are the amazing close up pictures of North Korea's mass games - after photographers were previously banned from taking shots so close to the dazzling formation dances .
A proud gorilla mum welcomes her newborn baby western lowland gorilla, a critically endangered species .
From a floating jelly fish to a relaxed seal, Britain’s unappreciated beach life is captured above and below the water .
Balanced on one leg, a frog assumes the crane kick martial arts stance made famous in the movie The Karate Kid .
A BEAUTIFUL sight for the eyes and the imagination, these liquid sculptures take shape in many different colours and formations .