Ex-football Chairman embroiled in fresh fraud scandal

Former Tipton Town FC chairman, Bill Williams is being probed by police regarding three further fraud incidents.

It was revealed earlier this month that police are investigating three fresh fraud cases, after the accountant was jailed for illegally pocketing more than £276,000 from the life insurance and pension policies of a murdered father. Bill Williams, of Chester Road, West Bromwich, spent the swindled money on luxury family holidays to the USA, season tickets for Aston Villa football matches, and extravagant family parties he also invested large sums into Tipton Town FC. A further five individuals have come forward to police, claiming to be victims duped by Williams, but his involvement is yet to be confirmed.  According to the Express and Star ‘father-of-two Williams is less than a month into a five-and-a-half year prison term for taking cash owed to the daughter of murdered South Staffordshire company director Andrew Diack’.  Williams worked as an accountant for Featherstone-based Spray Tanker Services, which 29-year-old Andrew Diack co-owned. Days after Diack was stabbed to death at the Flying Dutchman, a pub in Wolverhampton in 2009, Williams set about his plan to swindle the money owed to his two-year-old daughter. The Express and Star reported at the beginning of June that ‘Williams listed himself as an executor of an insurance and pension policy he helped to set up for Mr Diack’. Williams also duped pensioners Ronald and Sheila Haynes out of their £97,000 life savings. At Wolverhampton Crown Court, Judge Amjad Nawaz described bankrupt Williams as a man who ‘preyed on the vulnerable’. ‘The Express and Star revealed earlier this month that Mr Diack was not the only victim of 59-year-old Williams. He was jailed in 1986 for a previous £100,000 fraud while manager of Great Wyrley’s Harrisons FC’. The amount of money involved in the alleged cases has not yet been revealed but an investigation is underway.
Manchester debt firm is liquidated owing creditors over £2.2m
Wednesday 11th August 2010

Bankrupt football legend probed by police over loan fraud
Monday 2nd August 2010

Mortgage broker ordered to repay £1.5m of client money used to pay off debts
Wednesday 14th July 2010

Barclays lifts lid on banking write-offs
Wednesday 20th February 2008

Send To Friend      Print      RSS Feed      News Archive
If you have any queries about this news story or our news section, please contact us

View the original article here

Read more »

Posted in: Chairman,embroiled,Exfootball,fraud,fresh,scandal

PPI broker collapses in mis-selling scandal

The finance company handling a backlog of PPI cases lodged against its former loan broking business has been placed into administration.

Wilmslow Financial Services (WFS) had been managing the wave of claims lodged against it from former clients who had taken out Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) alongside loans with Freedom Finance.The company ceased to offer new loans last year and sold its loan broking business.Phil Duffy, of insolvency firm MCR which has been appointed as joint administrator of the company along with Sarah Bell, told the TheBusinessDesk.com the company's shareholders were forced to call in administrators after the British Banking Association and several major banks recently announced they would no longer continue to fight a "super complaint" brought against them by Citizens Advice for mis-selling PPI insurance alongside loans.He said that shareholders felt they had no choice but to seek administration as WFS’s potential liabilities were likely to considerably outweigh remaining assets.In many cases, the level of compensation owed to former customers is likely to be several times the amount that WFS initially received in commission for selling PPI policies.The Financial Services Compensation Scheme has issued a statement saying it "is aware that Wilmslow Financial Services Ltd has been put into administration".It said that it was investigating how it could help those with claims against the company but said there was no need for claimants to contact them.It said ‘we will publish an update on Wilmslow Financial Services as soon as more information is available’.Under its compensation scheme, customers are likely to be able to reclaim 90 per cent of any policy money owed to them with no upper limit on the size of claim.WFS was majority owned by US private equity firm JZ International, which bought a 55 per cent stake in the company in 2000.Under the ownership of entrepreneur Rupert Webb, the Freedom Finance business prospered during the early part of the last decade and reached turnover of £45 million in 2006 - the year in which it sold its Freedom Lending mortgage broking division to Merrill Lynch for a reported £20 million.
Manchester debt firm is liquidated owing creditors over £2.2m
Wednesday 11th August 2010

Bankrupt football legend probed by police over loan fraud
Monday 2nd August 2010

Mortgage broker ordered to repay £1.5m of client money used to pay off debts
Wednesday 14th July 2010

Barclays lifts lid on banking write-offs
Wednesday 20th February 2008

Send To Friend      Print      RSS Feed      News Archive
If you have any queries about this news story or our news section, please contact us

View the original article here

Read more »

Posted in: broker,collapses,misselling,scandal

Championship director caught up in fraud scandal

A director at a Championship football club has been arrested as part of a major fraud investigation.

Alan Whiteley, a director at Cardiff City, was arrested and suspended as a partner at M&A Solicitors on Thursday, the Guardian reports.

The company also suspended a second partner, Eric Evans, 65, from Abergavenny.In a statement, M&A Solicitors said Whiteley and Evans had been suspended with immediate effect.

“This action arises from a single transaction involving a client of the firm that is under investigation by the Serious Fraud Office,” the statement said.

“The firm acted diligently by referring matters to the authorities and the Serious Fraud Office’s investigation follows on from our referral.

“We are co-operating with the Serious Fraud Office’s investigation and due to the ongoing nature of that investigation we are unable to provide further information at this time.

“We wish to reassure our clients that this is an isolated incident.

“We are committed to providing our clients with the best service possible, and we are working with clients to ensure that business will continue as normal.”

On Wednesday, the SFO said it had searched seven residential properties, including five in South Wales, one in London and one in Birmingham.

One business premises in South Wales was also searched.

The operation was conducted with the assistance of South Wales Police, Gwent Police, the Metropolitan Police and West Midlands Police.

Whiteley, 47, from Bridgend, was appointed company secretary of Cardiff City in 2006. The investigation has no connection to the Championship promotion contenders.

A Cardiff City spokesman told WalesOnline.co.uk: “We are aware that a director of Cardiff City Football Club is under investigation into a matter that is totally unrelated to the club. While the investigation is ongoing it would be inappropriate to make any further comment.”

The suspensions follow an investigation by the SFO which involved more than 90 investigators and police officers from several different forces.

The SFO said five people were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud in relation to the sale of four mining sites in South Wales.

It said those arrested were three men, aged 65, 36 and 31, in South Wales, a 47-year-old man in London and a 28-year-old woman in Birmingham.

They were interviewed and released on bail pending further inquiries.

M&A Solicitors, the law firm Whiteley established in 1999, is one of Wales’ largest commercial law firms.

View the original article here

Read more »

Posted in: caught,Championship,director,fraud,scandal