The film industry found itself part of a real-life drama last week, when the producer of the first modern British film to be shot in 3D was found guilty of a £1.5 million VAT fraud.
The film, Eldorado, which featured a number of well-known British and Hollywood actors, including former Dr Who Sylvester McCoy and Splash actress Daryl Hannah, was the last to be made by David Carradine, of Kung Fu fame, before he died in 2009.
However, the film never made it to the big screen.
According to HMRC, producer Richard Driscoll falsified invoices for the costs of making films in order to reclaim VAT back that he was not entitled to. Driscoll, who owned a film studio in Cornwall where the films were made, also set up a number of associated companies that were used purely to commit the crime.
The claims for repayment of £1.5 million VAT were based on production costs of more than £9 million, but investigators found that the costs were actually less than £1 million. Bogus invoices were sent to support the false repayment claims and other invoices were genuine but had their values inflated, says HMRC.
At Southwark Crown Court last week, Driscoll was found guilty of conspiracy to defraud VAT. He will be sentenced on 1st July.
Contact Lewis Nedas’ Criminal Lawyers in London
If you have been charged with VAT fraud or think that you may require specialist legal advice, please contact our solicitors Jeffrey Lewis or Siobhain Egan on 020 7387 2032 or complete our online enquiry form here.
This blog post is intended as a news item only - no connection between Lewis Nedas and the parties concerned is intended or implied.
