Scarborough salesman admits fraud by evading tax; court hears he has repaid the full £42,000

A Scarborough salesman has been sentenced for evading more than £40,000 in tax.
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Scott Fowkes, of James Street, Scarborough, worked for a printer company and lied on his tax returns to falsely claim repayments, an investigation by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) revealed.

The 40-year-old sales manager under-declared his income and claimed false expenses on his Self Assessment tax returns between 2011 and 2017. He also entered fake information about pension and Gift Aid payments.

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Fowkes said he claimed extra work expenses on his tax returns because his employer would not pay them. But enquiries with the firm revealed he was able to reclaim all reasonable work related expenses through the company.

He received £19,273.86 in repayments and a further £4,850.60 was withheld by HMRC.

He also owed another £17,875.31 in unpaid tax.

Fowkes admitted fraud by false representation at Scarborough Magistrates’ Court on 21 January.

At York Crown Court yesterday he was sentenced to 20 months in prison, suspended for two years, and ordered to complete 200 hours of unpaid work.

Fowkes has repaid the full £41,999.77 to HMRC.

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An HMRC spokesperson said:“Fowkes thought he could line his pockets with taxpayer’s money and get away with it, but he was wrong.

“We will continue to pursue criminals like Fowkes, who think tax fraud is acceptable. Anyone with information about tax fraud should report it online or call our Fraud Hotline on 0800 788 887.”

Information about any type of tax fraud can be reported to HMRC online at https://www.gov.uk/report-an-unregistered-trader-or-business.