Man used Covid loan to help buy Lanzarote house

Two men have been sentenced for fraudulently obtaining loans with one using a £25,000 Covid Bounce Back payment to buy a property in Spain.

Alex Hope and Liam Jones, who ran Hull company Virtutum Limited, which sold cannabidiol products, took out a £56,000 loan from a private lender.

Hope separately laundered the Covid money through a number of bank accounts and put it towards buying a €245,825 (£210,174) house in Lanzarote, the Insolvency Service said.

Both men pleaded guilty to fraud charges at Hull Crown Court and were handed suspended jail terms on Monday.

Hope, 41, of Elm Tree, Halsham, East Yorkshire, was given a three-year prison sentence, suspended for three years.

Jones, 42, of Edinburgh Drive, Holton-le-Clay, Lincolnshire, was sentenced to 10 months in prison, suspended for 18 months.

The Insolvency Service said the pair had signed the £56,000 loan agreement giving personal guarantees that no legal action was taking place against them.

However, both defendants were being pursued by a specialist litigation firm for about £800,000.

Mark Stephens, chief investigator at the Insolvency Service, said: "The Insolvency Service remains committed to holding those who exploit loan schemes and financial systems for personal gain to account."

A Proceeds of Crime hearing will take place later to try and recover the money, the Insolvency Service added.

This headline has been updated to reflect the fact only one of the men obtained the Covid loan, and not both.

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