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.
SURROUNDED by divers, a hungry green sea turtle enjoys being the centre of attention .
WITH THEIR adorable big round eyes and fluffy white fur, these baby seals are cute enough to melt any heart .
WITH a paw in the air and his tongue hanging from his mouth, it is clear to see that this little groundhog is struggling to wake up and leave behind the comfort of his burrow .
AN ANGRY giraffe gave a bush-riding cyclist a scare when he stomped his £2K bike into the dirt .
VIBRANT bursts of colour fill the screen as beautiful flowers blossom in these time-lapse videos .
BLOWING bubbles underwater, this adorable polar bear slides into his tank for a playful dip .
From a floating jelly fish to a relaxed seal, Britain’s unappreciated beach life is captured above and below the water .
Pic By HotSpot Media - PARROT RIDES ON THE TUBE - THIS pretty boy could be forgiven for forgetting his Oyst-aaarrrgh-card .
A fox takes a tumble and lands on his head when he tries to fend off a pair of eagles in Japan .
HOTSPOT MEDIA - BACK TO THE FUTURE WITH AR' KID: A POSTAL SORTER has perfected the art of time travel by delivering images that are from the past .
THIS RING of fire in the sky is the annular solar eclipse that wowed our cousins down-under .