As I have mentioned previously, those who bagged a BBL, slapped the money in their hand/man bag then got their Company Dissolved are being hunted and prosecuted, and here is the latest case that has gone to court and the sentence given.
Ivan Hristov Fratev, 57 was also given a 2-year suspended sentence with 4 months’ electronically tagged curfew, at Snaresbrook Crown Court, in addition to a 6-year ban, for dissolving his business after taking out the loan.
The judge also included 15 days rehabilitation activity requirement (RAR) as part of his suspended sentence.
Fratev was the sole director of Chingford-based BI&F Ltd, which traded as a construction, security and extermination business from premises in Alpha Road. In May 2020 he applied for the maximum £50,000 Bounce Back Loan, designed to help businesses keep afloat through the pandemic.
But within two weeks of the money arriving in the company bank account, Fratev applied to dissolve BI&F Ltd, without informing the bank that had loaned him the money. Failure to notify creditors of plans to strike off a company is a criminal offence.
He was caught through powers granted to the Insolvency Service in December 2021, which allow it to investigate directors of dissolved companies who are suspected of closing their business to avoid repaying Covid-19 support loans.
Peter Fulham, Chief Investigator of the Criminal Investigation Team at the Insolvency Service said:
“Covid-19 financial support schemes were funded from the public purse to support genuine businesses during the pandemic. Directors who abused the scheme have exploited taxpayers.
This two-year suspended prison sentence, along with a curfew order and a 6-year disqualification, reflects the thoroughly dishonest conduct of Ivan Fratev and should serve as a warning to others who engaged in such behaviour.
The Insolvency Service will act to remove directors who abused Bounce Back Loans from the business arena.”
The ban prevent the former directors from becoming involved in the promotion, formation, or management of a company, without the permission of the court.
In addition to his ban and two-year suspended sentence, Fratev is also subject to 4 months’ electronically monitored curfew between 7pm and 7am and was ordered to pay court costs of £500.
To learn more about many other similar cases then head over to this section of the website: