Fraudster who bought villas with taxpayer cash ordered to pay £1.2m

Fraudster who bought three Spanish villas and two Rolex watches with taxpayers cash after VAT scam is ordered to pay back £1.2m or face another seven years in jail

• Graham Drury, 71, from Wrexham, was jailed for five-and-a-half years for fraud

A jailed fraudster who bought three Spanish villas after stealing from the taxpayer has been told to cough up £1.2million or face another seven years in jail. 

Graham Drury, 71, formerly from Rossett in Wrexham, was jailed for five-and-a-half years in 2021 after submitting fraudulent VAT returns to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) totalling more than £1.8million. 

At a hearing in Mold Crown Court on Friday, Drury was told he had three months to pay a £1.2million confiscation order.

If he did not do so in time, his prison sentence would be increased by seven years. 

The 71-year-old claimed the fraudulent repayments by using his company, Drury Machine Sales Ltd, on machinery that was never purchased.

Graham Drury, 71, formerly from Rossett in Wrexham, was jailed for five-and-a-half years in 2021 after submitting fraudulent VAT returns

Pictured: One of the villas located in Spain which Drury bought using the stolen money

As well as buying three villas in Spain with the stolen money he bought a property in the UK and a BMWX6.

He also purchased two Rolex watches and his assets included £100,000 in a bank account. 

The HMRC restrained all of the villas, the watches and the £100,000.

If Drury does not pay the confiscation order then the assets will be disposed of and the proceeds will go into the public purse.

The 71-year-old was arrested on January 13, 2019, and was charged with VAT fraud totalling £1,887,010.

He pleaded guilty to the VAT fraud at Mold Crown Court on August 2, 2021, and was sentenced the following day.

The 71-year-old is now being told he has three months to pay a £1.2million confiscation order

A look at one of the two Rolex watches Drury also purchased following the fraud

The 71-year-old claimed the fraudulent repayments by using his company, Drury Machine Sales Ltd, on machinery that was never purchased

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