LONDON, Jan. 16 -- The government of the United Kingdom issued the following news:
Matthew Pickard, 56, Stephen Greenaway, 47,and Paul Laver, 47from Bournemouthhavebeen convictedat Southwark Crown Court todayoffraudulent trading, ahead of an expected trialnext month.
An SFO investigation found that the directors defrauded approximately 3,000 UK investors over seven years. Operating from a Bournemouth call centre, employees of Ethical Forestry Limited cold-called members of the public offering pension reviews. They used false company names, including Richmond Solutions and the Pension Report Service, withoutdisclosingtheir true employer. Callerhandlersencouragedpeopleto withdraw their savings from legitimate pension schemes and invest funds in tree planting in Costa Rica.
Whilsttreeswere planted in Costa Rica, no funds were set aside tomaintainthetreesorundertakecommercial harvest, soinvestors' money could nevergenerate thepromisedreturnsfrom the harvest of trees.
Funds wereinsteadused to support the defendants' lifestyles.Stephen Greenawaypurchaseda £1.9 million home in Sandbanks, Poole, while Matthew Pickard bought a £4.3million property.
The defendants also amassed a collection of high-end sports cars including a Maserati NeroGranturismo, Ferrari 458 Italia, McLaren MP4-12C, Audi R8 V10 Spyder, and Porsche 911 Turbo S and enjoyed luxury holidays in Italy, Mexico, France, Gran Canaria, the Maldives, and Switzerland.
£2.77millionofinvestormonies were also diverted and used to administer a tax avoidance scheme for the directors' own benefit.
Emma Luxton,Director of Operationsatthe Serious Fraud Office(SFO), said:
These former directors preyed on people's good intentions to support 'green' investment, stealing £70 million from hard-earned life savings and pensions.
Our complex investigation exposed this fraudulent scheme andthe strength of our evidence led to guilty pleas. This is an important step towardsjusticeand compensationfor the 3,000 victims.
Solicitor General Ellie ReevesMP, said:
Fraud is a devastating crime that destroys lives and strips people of their hard-earned savings. Those who exploit the appeal of ethical investments to defraud from saversaren'tsimply committing financial crime - they are betraying the trust of thousands of people planning for their futures.
As Solicitor General, I am committed to supporting the Serious Fraud Office in tacklinginvestmentfraud and holding perpetrators to account. This conviction sends a clear message: the authorities will pursue those who prey on the public, regardless of how complex their schemes may be.
The defendants are expected to be sentenced in May.
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