Pensioner Ordered To Pay Back Dirty Money

A 69 year old man who concealed almost £60,000 of cash in his underpants in an attempt to smuggle it out of the country through Dover, has been ordered to pay back £380,000 or face a further four years in jail.

At a confiscation hearing at Canterbury Crown Court, John Anthony Maurice, a semi-retired property salesman of Barnstaple, north Devon, was ordered to payback the money by 1 September 2011, after the Court heard he had hidden assets totalling £380,000.

Upon granting the order, Her Honour Judge Adele Williams called Mr Maurice "an intelligent, sophisticated and practised liar."

Robert Alder, Assistant Director of Criminal Investigation for HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) said: "Confiscation proceedings show that our work doesn't stop once someone is convicted; we then start proceedings to reclaim the profits of their crime. If Maurice doesn't pay back the £380,000 he's been ordered to serve a further four years in jail and will still owe the money.

If you have information relating to this type of crime, or the whereabouts of Maurice's assets, please call our 24-hour hotline on 0800 59 5000 or email customs.hotline@hmrc.gsi.gov.uk and help us stamp it out."

Maurice pleaded guilty to almost £4 million in money laundering offences and was jailed on 3 March 2010 for four years. HMRC began an investigation after Maurice was stopped as he was waiting to board a ferry from Dover to France. When challenged, he produced 63,000 euros and £2,600 sterling from his underpants. This money which equated to £53,235 plus accrued interest, had already forfeited to the Crown following an application under Section 298 Proceeds of Crime Act 2008 at Dover Magistrates 25 March 2010.