A CROOKED tax agent – who was living in Dumfries and stole more than £750,000 in a tax and mortgage fraud – has been jailed for ten years.
Robin Moss, who is an internationally ranked chess player, lied about his income, made bogus claims in the names of unsuspecting clients, and provided false documents that were used in fraudulent mortgage applications.
The 58-year-old and his wife Liliana were living in Dumfries when they were arrested by HMRC officers at their home on Kirkland Road on July 16, 2018.
Moss was convicted in absence of tax fraud, money laundering, mortgage fraud and theft following a joint investigation between HMRC and Leicestershire Police.
Moss had persuaded one client to pay their £53,000 tax bill through the crooked agent who paid it straight into his bank account rather than paying it to HMRC.
Other clients had their HMRC details used by Moss to make false tax repayments which he had paid into his own bank accounts.
Moss splashed hundreds of thousands of pounds from the proceeds of his crimes on luxury items, including more than £115,000 on collectible Moorcroft pottery, £89,251 on gold coins and £18,930 on jewellery.
His wife, 49-year-old Liliana, admitted a £115,000 money laundering charge on June 9.
Moss failed to attend sentencing at Nottingham Crown Court on October 9, while Liliana appeared via video link.
He was sentenced to ten years in prison, and Liliana was sentenced to seven months in prison, suspended for 12 months.
Nick Stone, operational lead in HMRC’s Fraud Investigation Service, said: “Robin Moss abused his position of trust to steal from clients and the taxpayer.
“Tax fraud is never a victimless crime and the eye watering sums he spent on pottery and gold should have been funding the public services we all rely on.
“I hope this sentence serves as a warning to the minority of corrupt professionals who wrongly believe they can use their knowledge to commit fraud.
“We can and will work with our law enforcement partners to bring you to justice and we encourage anyone with information about any type of tax fraud to report it online.”
Former Leicestershire police detective, Jason Helmn added: “It took the jury just 55 minutes to find Robin Moss guilty, and I’m glad they saw how this so-called ‘professional’ was taking advantage of his clients, who believed his work was genuine.
“He went to great lengths to hide his criminality, shown in a complex web of transactions which proved how he converted his criminally obtained funds into cash and high value items.
“This has been a lengthy investigation and one that has required a lot of hard work and tenacity across both police and HMRC.”
A third person, Rajvir Sahota, admitted mortgage fraud using false documents supplied by Moss. He pleaded guilty in May 2021 and was sentenced to six months in prison, suspended for 12 months.
Action to recover the stolen money is underway.
