A Torquay bookkeeper received a 8 month suspended prison sentence for paying a client’s tax bill into his own account rather than to HMRC.
The Torquay Herald reports that Darren Moysey had set himself up as a tax and accountancy advisor, and told one of his clients they needed to pay him a tax bill of £3,129.94, which he pocketed. The fraud happened between January 2013 and November 2014.
Sentencing Moysey, who pleaded guilty to one count of fraud, Recorder Rufus Taylor said: “[The victim] came to you for help with her tax affairs. She sent you a cheque to settle her tax affairs but instead of doing that, you pocketed it.
“It was an abuse of your position and trust and it had a considerable and detrimental effect on her with the stress and anxiety it had.”
The victim was pursued by HMRC for a time over the unpaid amount and suffered considerable stress, the court heard. She had to pay an extra amount as a result.
Moysey received an eight month prison sentence, suspended for 18 months. He was ordered to carry out 200 hours unpaid work, as well as pay costs of £340 and a surcharge of £80.