The Carphone Warehouse Fraud!!!!!

The Carphone Warehouse is the Uk's largest mobile phone retailer. They have shops in every city and town. On the face of it they provide a valuable service...cheap phones and plenty of them!

The reality behind how this happens is astouding! The Carphone Warehouse has been in the middle of the UK's largest ever fraud.

It is a fraud that is magnanimous in size...over £250 million! That is the equivelant of the economy of a third world country. This is the figure that the fraudsters have taken from the British taxpayer!

The Carphone Warehouse were a company that have operated throughout this fraud in purchasing the mobile phones knowing that they were from a fraud....thats why they have been able to buy them so cheap!

The Fraud was uncovered in 2003 and was prosecuted this year in May. There have been lengthy sentences given to those convicted but miraculously none were at The Carphone Warehouse!

The fraud operated quite simply....phones were imported from Europe VAT free by a fictitous company who supposedly sold them to the likes of Carphone Warehouse who would either sell them to the general public or sell them abroad with VAT added by either the customer or Customs as a rebate. It sometimes involved other companies to extend the chain of sale.
This operation has carried on for years, day after day, deal after deal. The VAT that was pocketed by the criminals is the taxpayers money.

Currently the economy is in turmoil and the £250 million surely could have helped....could even have bailed out Northern Rock! Thank Carphone Warehouse!

The trial of the 5 people who were eventually charged and brought to court commenced in may 2008 - none from The Carphone Warehouse, as the charges were dropped as no doubt charges against large corporations such them are never taken forward.

The defendants were Taher Majid who was described as the 'Principal' ie the Organiser or the 'Mr Big'. Along side him were Abdul Koser, Quentin Reynolds, Curtis Laurent and Peter Ebbrell. They were all described as 'buffers' who were much in the same position as The Carphone Warehouse. Strange how they were dragged into court for their respective roles yet the big guns avoided it.

The prosecution alleged that it was a well orchestrated fraud and all were complicit. They were all charged with 'Conspiracy to Cheat the Revenue'. In theory, if we follow this then all must be complicit, yet The Carphone Warehouse along with others avoided the Courts.

The opening of the case saw the Prosecutor Mr Parroy talk about the setting up of the fraud by Mr Big - Taher Majid. His meeting with others all over the world. the conspiratorial meetings etc. The 3 years of surveillance of Taher Majid. It showed his lifestyle, similar to that of a footballer or a hollywood star. He flew first class all over the world - Dubai, Hong Kong, China, America, Pakistan and Spain! All at the expense of the public.

He even had the cheek to do much of this flying on false passports that were recovered!
Taher Majid the kingpin of the fraud.......was shown to lavish the money on his expensive range of cars including 4x4's, Porsches, BMW's, Mercedes etc.

They illustrated how he has evaded the authorities by stashing millions upon millions of pounds of the fraud money abroad..in Pakistan....just out of reach for recovery. In accounts accessible by him in false names opened with his phoney passports.

Mobile Phones recovered from Taher Majid (the irony of it eh? mobiles from a mobile phone fraudster!) showed the contact between all the defendants and from Taher Majid's phone the instructions of what others were to do. Well what else would you expect from the mastermind!
He was sentenced to 10 years.

Of the other defendants, only 2 were convicted. They were Abdul Koser and Quentin Reynolds. The others are facing a retrial some time soon.

Abdul Koser operated a mobile phone shop (s) which sold goods similar to those sold by The Carphone Warehouse ie a retailer and wholesaler.

During the fraud he purchased and sold millions upon millions of phones knowing that they were the product of the fraud...much the same as The Carphone Warehouse. He was a supplier to The Carphone Warehouse. He was a close associate of Taher Majid, hence was obviously involved in the fraud knowinglyie he was not inncocent. They did notlive in the same city. Abdul Koser had a turnover of Millions and profitted immensely. He too, as with Taher Majid, lived the life of a footballer. He spent,spent and spent. he was an avid first class flyer, with an eye for fast cars and luxury property! He was often seen with Taher Majid, hatching away at the plot along with a few others. He was sentenced to 5 years.

Quentin Reynolds was in the same catergory as Abdul Koser. He was also a trader, also known as a buffer. He also supplied The Carphone Warehouse. He also earnt obscen amounts of money,all public money robbed from the state! he invested his in fast luxury cars, property and really went overboard. He spent his new found wealth on Film Studios and various productions! He had set himself up as a film director! All at the expense of the taxpayer! He was also a close associate of the Mr Big Taher Majid. Perhaps they could make a film together! He was sentenced to 4 and a half years.

Curtis Laurent, one of the 2 facing a retrial, is also a trader. He also earnt obscene amounts of money as well and too bought luxury cars and personalised plates and property. He in fact in 2004 was shown to have earnt £6.1m in the space of 6 weeks alone! Not even Ronaldo the footballer earns that kind of money! These figures are astronomical!

Peter Ebbrell, the other defendant facing a retrial also earnt silly amounts of money. He lived in a manor house worth £5m or so and drove luxury cars that he had in his garage such as Bentleys, Porsches, Ferraris etc. He had large unexplained amounts of money arrive in his account that he could not account for....a million here...a million there!

These career criminals fleeced the economy with the aid of their huge ally The Carphone Warehouse who has obviously left them to hang high and dry.

It is truly a shame that a huge corporation such as The Carphone Warehose can abuse the system and avoid prosecution.