The boss of a Manchester parking company has been jailed for stealing more than £466,000 of his employees’ tax payments after a HMRC investigation uncovered his fraud.
Brian Pearson, 57, of Wilmslow, Cheshire, was sentenced for pocketing the Income Tax and National Insurance Contributions (NIC) for up to 60 of his employees deducted through the Pay As You Earn (PAYE) system.
Pearson ran MIA Secure Parking Ltd, a ‘meet and greet’ car parking service based in Sharston, Wythenshawe, which later became UK Premier Parking Ltd. Both companies operated parking services focused on the nearby Manchester Airport.
HMRC raided Pearson’s home and business addresses seizing business records, computers, payroll books, employee and financial documentation in March 2015.
The payroll books were blank, but employee and other salary records showed the tax and NIC Pearson had taken from his employee’s pay. None of these PAYE deductions had ever been paid to HMRC,
Tony Capon, Assistant Director, HMRC Fraud Investigation Service, said: “Pearson stole from the public and his staff. He knew exactly what his responsibilities were but choose to pocket the money instead of paying it over to HMRC.
“Stealing tax at the expense of honest taxpayers and businesses who play by the rules is not acceptable. We are determined to create a level playing field for all businesses in the UK by tackling fraud whatever the circumstances. If you know of anyone who is committing tax fraud you can report them by calling the HMRC Fraud Hotline on 0800 788 887.”
Initially, Pearson claimed to be too ill to do the payroll but on 12 May 2017, at Manchester Crown Court, he pleaded guilty to the fraudulent evasion of Income Tax and NIC. On 10 October 2017, he was sentenced to three years and two months jail.
Pearson had pocketed £466,029.77 over the ten-year fraud period. Confiscation proceedings have begun to recover this stolen tax.
