Huge fines for tax evasion Landlord

A Landlord has recently been fined a massive £283,886, been given a two year suspended sentence, ordered to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work and pay £1,500 in costs following tax evasion charges.  It was alleged that the defendant had failed to pay tax on rental income on his ten properties in the London area covering a period of 5 years.  If the fine is not paid within 3 months he has been warned he will face 3 years in prison.

HMRC decided to carry out a full investigation into College principle Macdonald Abambas affairs following a crackdown on Landlords in the area.  Mr Abamba was given the opportunity re repay the tax, which he had used to buy further property abroad, but failed to do so.  HMRC then launched a criminal investigation and the defendant was charged with cheating the public revenue, under common law.  Once the case got to court Mr Abamba pleaded guilty.

#John Cooper, assistant director, Fraud Investigation Service at HMRC, said: “Abamba should have done the right thing by declaring this income. He was given the opportunity to come clean and pay what he owed but he chose to ignore it.

“He now has a criminal record, has ruined his reputation and must rightfully repay the money he stole, plus interest, within three months or face real jail time.

“The majority of us pay the tax that’s due, when it’s due, and it is unfair that people like Abamba think they have the right to steal money that is needed to fund vital public services.

“We know that some landlords are unsure of their tax liabilities which is why we launched the Let Property campaign, but this man clearly knew what he was doing and continued anyway.”