A couple in their 70s have been convicted of a brazen VAT fraud.

John George Moore was found guilty of three counts of knowingly being concerned in the fraudulent evasion of tax totalling more than £4.65m.

His wife Patricia was found guilty on one count of the same offence.

The couple, of Meary Voar, Santon, were warned they could face a long time in prison.

A jury delivered their verdicts this morning following a three-week trial.

Deemster Main-Thompson said: ’This was an avaricious, deliberate, cynical and brazen fraud.

’These were offences motivated by greed.’

He said Mr Moore had been convicted by a jury on the ’plainest and clearest possible evidence’ of extremely serious fraudulent offences committed over a substantial period of time, between 2010 and 2019.

The Deemster said an aggravating factor was that when he embarked on his latest fraudulent escapade he had already been investigated and charged with the earlier offences but had ’carried on regardless’.

He told Mr Moore that the maximum sentence for these offences was seven years and it was difficult to see, given the sums involved and the degree of fraudulent cynicism, how he could impose a sentence of less than that.

The jury heard that the offences involved the Moore’s companies failing to account for, and pay on to Customs and Excise, VAT received on land sales.

Mr Moore was ’very much the dominant fraudster’ who had brought his influence to bear on his wife to get her involved in the later stages, said the Deemster.

The jury had been reduced to six after one member last night went into self-isolation when a member of their household has to take a test for Covid.

The Moores were remanded in custody pending sentencing on a date of be fixed.

* For further coverage of this case see next week’s Examiner.