Derbyshire men jailed for £205,000 tax fraud

Danny Peat, from Peveril Road, Tibshelf, was jailed for 16 months after pleading guilty to falsifying online self-assessment tax returns.

Peat, 30, claimed he was self-employed with large business expenses and attempted to steal more than £120,000 in tax repayments.

He was joined by Shane Plunkett, 31, of New Breck Road, Belper, who made a similarly fraudulent claim for more than £85,000.

Plunkett was jailed for six months after also pleading guilty and received an additional nine-month suspended sentence for other police offences.

The convictions at Derby Crown Court follow an investigation by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC).

Stuart Taylor, assistant director of criminal investigation at HMRC, said: “Peat and Plunkett made several online claims, which all proved bogus, in an attempt to line their own pockets.

“HMRC takes tax fraud extremely seriously and anyone deliberately choosing to evade their taxes or making deliberate attacks on the UK’s tax systems will face prosecution.”

If you have information about people who may be involved in tax fraud, call 0800 788 887.