Ex-BHS owner Dominic Chappell found guilty of tax evasion
Businessman Dominic Chappell has been convicted of tax evasion on £2.2m of income he received from his £1 deal to buy the failed retailer.
Chappell was convicted by a jury at Southwark Crown Court this afternoon, of all three counts of defrauding the public revenue out of value added tax, corporation tax and income tax owed on fees paid to him and his now-bankrupt firm Swiss Rock in connection to his ownership of BHS.
The tycoon was a key part of the consortium that bought struggling retailer BHS from retail magnate Sir Philip Green in 2015, just over a year before its collapse that resulted in 11,000 job losses.
During the trial Chappell claimed he had not acted dishonestly and said the £1 deal has been a “life-changing catastrophe”. He added he should “never have touched it with a barge pole.”
The court heard Chappell spent the cash on a £185,000 yacht, a Bentley Continental car, Beretta guns, a ski trip to Austria and a £95,000 payment to his wife.
The jury was told that over a 12-month period starting in 2015 Chappell and his company Swiss Rock received £2.2m in income and consultancy fees from the acquisition and management of BHS.
Simon York, Director, Fraud Investigation Service at HMRC, said: “Chappell was a high-profile businessman who knew tax had to be paid on his income and profits but chose not to do so. That’s money that should have been supporting our vital public services instead of funding his lavish lifestyle.”
“Today’s result sends a clear message to the minority who commit tax crime that no matter who you are or what resources you have at your disposal, no one is beyond our reach.”
In January The Pensions Regulator (TPR) ordered the former BHS boss to pay £9.5m into the collapsed department store’s pension schemes.
The regulator said Chappell’s acquisition, the appointment of inexperienced board members and an “inadequate” business plan were detrimental to the firm’s pension schemes.
Chappell will be sentenced later today.