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Former Paisley tax office worker jailed after posing as dead man during £171k fraud scheme

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dailyrecord.co.uk

A former tax worker posed as a dead man in calls to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) during a £171k embezzlement. Fraudster James McGee, who worked at the Paisley tax office, claimed to be the deceased man in VAT repayment claims before being arrested for the scam in 2013.

The 66-year-old used knowledge from his 34-year-career with HMRC to carry out the shameful act which led to a major investigation by the public body and the National Crime Agency (NCA).McGee, who left his VAT compliance role with HMRC in 2009, was today sentenced to 30 months in jail after being found guilty following trial at Ayr Sheriff Court. Don't miss the latest headlines from around Renfrewshire.

Sign up to our newsletters here. He was found to have hijacked the identity of a dead man where £101,443.14 was paid out due to the bogus VAT repayment claims, while a further £70,351 was withheld by HMRC.When arrested in 2013, McGee had two bank cards in the name of the deceased man.

One of the accounts had been opened after the man died and the other had been credited with some of the fraudulently obtained money.Officers searching McGee’s home seized handwritten paper records from his house which contained detailed information on several VAT registered businesses.Experts confirmed the handwritten records matched McGee’s entries in his old HMRC diaries and notebooks.Lynsey Thompson, Operational Lead, Fraud Investigation Service, HMRC, said: “McGee used his knowledge of the VAT system to coordinate a scheme to steal from the public purse – money that is

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